


The Girl Who Lived

by CupcakeOfAwesomeness



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fem!Harry, Gen, M/M, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-01
Updated: 2018-02-24
Packaged: 2018-04-07 04:29:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 49
Words: 137,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4249350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupcakeOfAwesomeness/pseuds/CupcakeOfAwesomeness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"There's one more thing that sets Evanna apart from the rest: she is, in all aspects, a witch." Evanna Potter, along with her friends, must save the wizarding world. Well, that's not entirely true. Her friends don't have to, they volunteered themselves to. But Evanna? She is the only one who can defeat the Dark Lord. Fem!Harry fanfic. I am not J.K. Rowling. This was originally posted by me on fanfiction.net, and this is all just copy and paste from there  and it may or may not make sense at times because I was too lazy to change any of the Author's Notes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Unsightly Redhead with the Scar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 1: Unsightly Redhead with the Scar
> 
> A/N: Contrary to popular belief, I didn't name Evanna after the actress who portrayed Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter movies, Evanna Lynch. I simply wanted a name where I could use the nickname Eva and this was the first name that came to mind. (Of course, that is the nickname I'm making her boyfriend use for her, and he doesn't come in until she's older.)
> 
> I know the title sucks, but I couldn't think of anything else . . . Haha, yep, I am lame, thanks for noticing! If anyone has any better title suggestions (especially as the story progresses) please feel free to run them by me! Who knows? Your title could win!
> 
> Also, this is my first attempt at Fem!Harry, so please, constructive criticism and no flames! Remember, even just saying, "Good job." fills my heart with joy and makes me want to update for you awesome people! (Yes, you are all awesome. Even though I don't know you, I know you are awesome.)

A scrawny, red-headed girl ran a finger across the feathery head of a beautiful snowy owl. She smiled wearily as the bird gave an indignant hoot. Withdrawing her finger from the cage, she whispered, "Just a few more hours now, Hedwig, and then we'll be at Hogwarts. We'll be free."

The girl's name was Evanna Potter. She had unruly dark red hair, startlingly green, almond-shaped eyes, and a lightning bolt shaped scar on her forehead. She was a rather tiny girl with a malnourished looking body. This was mostly because she had spent about ten years of her life under some stairs, pretending to be nonexistent, while she lived with her loathsome relatives, the Dursleys (her Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and cousin, Dudley). There's one more thing that sets Evanna apart from the rest: she is, in all aspects, a witch.

She had always known she was different. Whenever she got exceptionally angry (which wasn't often, but when she did, she would fully explode), things around her would blow up or something similar to that. Just recently in fact, she had set loose a snake at the local zoo! She smiled fondly at the memory. It was something she was strangely proud of.

Fiddling with her brand new wand (Holly, Phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple; another thing Evanna was quite proud of), she thought of all the things Hagrid had told her about. How she was a _real_ witch, how her parents had _truly_ died, how she was going to a _magic_ school called Hogwarts, how she had defeated the _darkest_ wizard of all times _without even trying_. Yes, her entire world had been flipped upside down, left, right, sideways, and back again within seconds. At least her life isn't boring anymore.

Evanna flipped her braided hair over her shoulder, examining the paper on which she had drawn a rough sketch of Rubeus Hagrid, the kindly gamekeeper who had helped her discover she was a witch and gather everything she needed for her first year at Hogwarts. Evanna was an artist, that was for sure. She had learned on her own, by drawing everything. The Dursleys had forbidden her to do so (for reasons unknown to man), but being the rebellious little girl that she was, she did it anyways. Much to her delight, when Hagrid had taken her to Diagon Alley, she had stumbled upon a wonderful sketchbook, complete with a set of pencils and pens and other things to help her draw. She had bought this without a second thought and was very glad she had done so. Now, the first sketch to grace the pages was a drawing of Hagrid, the first person to have actually made her smile.

The full moon shone through the window of her bedroom ( _an actual bedroom!_ ) and she felt happiness swell up within her. By this time tomorrow, she would be at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! Perhaps, just perhaps, she might even make genuine friends there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For a girl who had no idea how to get onto a platform that was supposedly nonexistent, she sure had figured it out fast. Evanna had simply followed a family of gingers that had been discussing Muggles (non-magical people) and they had told her that to enter the platform, she just had to run into a solid brick wall. Needless to say, she watched them do it first. Then, wonderfully, she had made friends with them!

She sat in a compartment with Ron Weasley, the youngest boy of the family, with herself as the main topic of discussion. She had willingly shown him her scar (which she generally hid behind her hair) and even willingly discussed the death of her parents (a topic she was not very open with). She was just so happy at the prospect of having a true friend for once in her life!

"I never knew I wasn't supposed to say it!" Evanna was retorting, as an elderly woman came up to their compartment, pushing a trolley of candies. "Besides, it's just a name! A really stupid name too!"

Ron was still gaping at her in awe when she went to examine the many wizarding sweets to choose from. Not many were daring enough to say You-Know-Who's name out loud, especially not many children. Ron liked Evanna's personality; sweet and kind one second, the next she'd be yelling like mad. He was in every more of an awe when Evanna dumped some of everything onto the empty seat across from them.

Evanna raised an eyebrow at him and said, "Well, go on! Let's eat this stuff!"

Ron gladly tossed the sandwiches his mum had packed for him aside and dug into the large stash of candies his new friend had bought. He felt a bit awkward, being with this girl who was not only famous, but pretty rich too. She didn't seem to mind or care that Ron didn't have fame or fortune; she just happily accepted him as a friend.

"He's gone!"

Ron looked over at Evanna, who was staring at a chocolate frog card in her hands. It was of Dumbledore, but apparently the headmaster had gone to look around. Ron was surprised that _Evanna_ was so surprised.

"Well, you can't expect him to hang around all day, can you?" Ron asked. "He'll be back. No, I've got Morgana again and I've got about six of her . . . Do you want it? You can start collecting." Ron's eyes strayed to the pile of Chocolate Frogs waiting to be unwrapped.

"Help yourself," said Evanna distractedly, shifting the chocolate frog card in her hands, examining it with interest. "But, you know, in the Muggle world, people just stay put in photos."

"Do they? What, they don't move at all?" Ron was amazed. No wonder Evanna had been so surprised. "Weird!"

Evanna began to rummage through her trunk to find her camera, her intent to show Ron a Muggle photograph. She didn't find her camera, but she did find a picture of her cousin as a baby. (How did that get in there?) She showed Ron the photo anyways, laughing along with him as they examined the baby which had an uncanny resemblance to a beach ball, and which didn't move, much to Ron's utter amazement.

"Sorry, but have you seen a toad?"

They turned to see a round-faced boy, who was nearly in tears, standing in the doorway of their compartment. Evanna immediately felt sympathy for him, though she didn't know exactly why he needed a toad.

When both she and Ron shook their heads, the boy bit back tears, saying, "I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!" He sighed. "If you see him, I suppose . . ." He trailed off before going to the next compartment.

"Don't know why he's so bothered," said Ron. "If I'd brought a toad I'd lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk."

Both looked down at the rat snoozing on Ron's lap. Evanna did find it quite pathetic, though that would be too rude to admit.

"He might have died and you wouldn't know the difference," said Ron in disgust. "I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn't work. I'll show you, look . . ."

He had just raised his wand when the compartment door slid open again. The toadless boy was back, but this time he had a girl with him. She was already wearing her new Hogwarts robes.

"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said. She had a bossy sort of voice, lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth.

"We've already told him we haven't seen it," said Ron, but the girl wasn't listening, she was looking at the wand in his hand.

"Oh, are you doing magic? Let's see it, then."

She invited herself into the compartment and sat next to Ron. Ron looked taken aback.

"Er — all right." He cleared his throat. " _Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow._ "

He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers stayed gray and fast asleep.

"Are you sure that's a real spell?" said the girl. "Well, it's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple spells just for practice and it's all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it's the very best school of witchcraft there is, I've heard — I've learned all our course books by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough — I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"

She said all this very fast, without pausing for breath. Evanna stared at the girl in awe for a few seconds, then realized that staring was quite rude and stopped.

"I'm Ron Weasley," Ron muttered, looking irritated at the girl, who had been truthfully quite rude.

"Evanna Potter," said Evanna politely, trying to ignore the bluntness of Hermione.

"Are you really?" Hermione asked. "I know all about you, of course — I got a few extra books for background reading, and you're in _Modern Magical History_ and _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_ and _Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century._ "

"Am I?" said Evanna, feeling dazed and slightly annoyed by this girl.

"Goodness, didn't you know, I'd have found out everything I could if it was me," said Hermione. "Do either of you know what house you'll be in? I've been asking around, and I hope I'm in Gryffindor, it sounds by far the best; I hear Dumbledore himself was in it, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad . . . Anyway, we'd better go and look for Neville's toad. You two had better change, you know, I expect we'll be there soon. By the way, you've got dirt on your nose, did you know? Right there." And she left, taking the toadless boy with her.

"Whatever house I'm in, I hope she's not in it," said Ron, rubbing his nose angrily before throwing his wand back into his trunk. "Stupid spell — George gave it to me, bet he knew it was a dud."

"I doubt he would do that — " Evanna began, but Ron just laughed.

"'Course he would! He and Fred do stuff like that all the time. Though usually it's worse," Ron said. Evanna blushed slightly; she had thought the twins were really funny.

For the next while (neither had kept time), they discussed which house they thought they'd be in (Ron hoped for Gryffindor, where his whole family had been in (including his five older brothers, Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, and George), and Evanna felt she was best suited for Gryffindor or Hufflepuff), and what Quidditch teams they supported (Evanna, having never heard of Quidditch before, listened to Ron explain the sport). It seemed to have only been minutes (though it must've been hours), when they arrived at the station. Upon exiting the train, Evanna felt two hands patting her head. She shot unamused looks up at the Weasley twins, watching them laugh and dart away from her. They could make her laugh, but they could also push her buttons.

Then she beamed as a giant of a man lead the first years up towards Hogwarts. "Hagrid!"

"Alright there, Evanna?" he asked, before calling out, "Firs' years! Firs' years, follow me!"

Though following him was no easy feat; he lead them down a steep, narrow path that was slick with mud. It was one thing to avoid falling flat on your face and it was another trying to keep up with Hagrid in the dark. He took far larger strides than any of the first years did and some had to run to keep up.

"So it's true then?" came a voice from behind Evanna. She turned around to see a rather pale boy, with sleek blonde hair, gray eyes, and quite pointed features. He didn't look a sickly pale, but he did have an air of meanness around him. "This unsightly, scrawny redhead with the appalling scar is Evanna Potter?"

Evanna felt her lips form a scowl. Who did this boy think he was? Though it may have been true (Evanna didn't think too highly of herself), he had no right to be rude! "Yes, I am," she announced, with her head held high. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"My name is Malfoy, Draco Malfoy." He glanced at Ron, who was currently trying to not faceplant in the mud by clinging to a tree. "You'll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there." He held out his hand, as if Evanna would _actually_ ditch Ron for _him_!

Evanna gave a short laugh. "I hope you don't mean yourself! Because I think I've got you perfectly figured out, and you definitely do not fall into the category of 'much better.' Nor do the Weasleys fall within the 'wrong sort.' _Goodbye_!" Evanna grabbed Ron's arm, pulling him away from Draco Malfoy, who glared after them with pure malice.

But she stopped short when the narrow path opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black take. That _had_ to be Hogwarts. It was an enormous, absolutely magnificent castle with many turrets and towers and it was settled atop a mountain just across the lake, where several boats sat, awaiting the first years to board. Evanna nearly forgot to get into a boat when Hagrid told them to, because her awe had her rooted to the spot. Ron had to tug on her sleeve to get her to join him in the last available boat with Hermione and Neville. Evanna's reverence of Hogwarts never stopped, not even for a second.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yay, meeting Evanna Lily Potter for the first time! I didn't give her a name that started with H for a number of reasons (including the one at the Author's Note at the top of this chapter), and I might disclose those reasons later on.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	2. More of a Gryffin than a Puff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 2: More of a Gryffin than a Puff
> 
> A/N: I hope this chapter is alright . . . It used to be way shorter, so I added the last two sections, and I'm pretty pleased with it. So, we meet some characters, and get to know the twins better, as well as Parvati (if only a little bit). We also discover how George starts to fancy little Evanna the first year XD
> 
> Oh yes, and when Evanna starts telling the twins how she can tell them apart, I just used ways to tell the Phelps twins apart (James and Oliver Phelps, who portrayed Fred and George Weasley in the movies). I mean, not the most obvious ways, that they say in the interviews (James' scar over his eyebrow and Oliver's two moles on his neck), but some of the more subtle ways, which can be found if you Google: how to tell james and oliver phelps apart livejournal (the one I used should be the first result)

"Potter, Evanna!"

Evanna walked forwards nervously, attempting to ignore the whispers around her. It wasn't easy.

"Potter, did she say?"

" _The_ Evanna Potter?"

Pulling herself onto the stool, she allowed the sorting hat to fall over her bottle-green eyes. She waited, expecting for the hat to yell her house, but instead she nearly fell off the stool when she heard it talking.

"Hmm," said a small voice in her ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting . . . So where shall I put you?"

Evanna was too shocked to make any suggestions. Though it seemed like the hat was waiting for her to make a comment, so she thought, _I don't know what house I'm most fit for_.

"Did you listen to my little song?" the hat asked.

_Well, yes,_ Evanna admitted, _but I feel I'm not really a full Gryffindor or a full Hufflepuff, just kind of an in between. Like a Gryffinpuff._

The hat chuckled at her comment. "I would be inclined to agree with you, but I see more of Gryffin than Puff."

_So I'm a — ?_

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Evanna felt a smile spread across her face as she hopped off the stool, practically colliding with Fred and George, who were dancing around, yelling, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" Evanna grinned as many Gryffindors shook her hands, including the twins and Percy. She also got the opportunity to meet the others in her house.

She met a boy named Neville Longbottom, who was round-faced, with a short, chubby build and blond hair. He was a sweet, shy boy, who reminded her of herself. She also met two other boys, Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan, who got along really well, despite the fact they were total opposites. Dean had dark hair and dark skin and was even taller than Ron Weasley, while Seamus, on the other hand, had an Irish accent and sandy coloured hair.

Then there was Lavender Brown, who had curly, dirty blonde hair, and Parvati Patil, who had long black hair, and was wearing a silver necklace with the letter 'P'. They were two of the most gossipy girls Evanna had ever met, not that she had ever talked to anyone else long enough to figure it out. Hermione Granger, whom Evanna had met briefly on the train, didn't seem to keen on talking to her, as she was locked in conversation with the Gryffindor prefect (and Ron's older brother), Percy Weasley, about the many classes they would be taking.

Fred and George Weasley introduced her to some of their friends too, including Lee Jordan (a dark-skinned boy with black hair set in dreadlocks), Angelina Johnson (a tall witch with long black hair, who was attractive, and probably physically fit), Alicia Spinnet (who had dark skin and brown hair), Katie Bell (a sweet witch, with brown hair), and Oliver Wood (who was well built and burly, with a Scottish accent).

Even after all of that, people were still wanting to talk to her and shake her hand and see her scar. She wasn't sure how she liked having fame, but she certainly liked having friends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron didn't understand why Evanna hung around the people she did. She could've hung out with all the pure-bloods and popular students. But instead, she hung out with the Muggle-borns and the Weasleys. When Ron inquired about it, she simply said that, "why hang out with those stupid winners when I could hang out with you awesome losers? You guys are my peeps!" (He couldn't truthfully say he understood the last part, but he assumed it was good.)

At the moment, Evanna was debating on something with Hermione. Ron couldn't hear them, and frankly didn't care to. He didn't like Hermione. She was quite rude to him. Evanna insisted that Hermione simply hadn't realized her rude demeanor, but Ron still didn't approve of her.

"And that, Miss Granger, is why pranks are definitely not a waste of time," Evanna finished. Fred and George began to applaud her, giving 'whoop!'s of joy. Evanna bowed jokingly. "Thank you! Thank you! I'd like to thank the academy — "

Hermione gave a huff of annoyance and retired angrily to her dormitory. Evanna watched her disappear, a look of disappointment on her face. She was not gaining points with the bushy haired bookworm. But her disappointment vanished just as soon as it had appeared when the twins yanked her down from the table she had been standing on, causing her to giggle as they pulled her in between them on a couch.

"Don't worry about her," Fred said nonchalantly.

"She's just upset because you're absolutely right," George reassured her.

"Of course, a majority of the students — "

"And teachers — "

"And families — "

"Probably agree with Granger."

"But it's not our fault!" they finished together.

Evanna laughed, but then tapped her chin in mock thoughtfulness. "I suppose that means you had nothing to do with the incident earlier this evening?"

Fred and George exchanged identical grins. Their prank that evening hadn't been their most spectacular or anything, but Evanna had seemed to like it. They had charmed Percy's freckles to spell out PREFECT across his face. He hadn't seemed to enjoy being the laughingstock of Hogwarts during the feast.

"He didn't seem too impressed, did he, George?"

"Can't imagine why, Fred."

Evanna laughed again. "You two are too much!" They seemed to take this as a compliment, and each put an arm around Evanna's shoulders. Evanna rolled her eyes, but grinned nonetheless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lacking the ability to sleep due to her excitement, Evanna crept down to the common room, drawing utensils and sketchbook in hand. The fire had been reduced to smoldering embers at this point, definitely without enough of a glow for Evanna to see her paper clearly. Snuggling deep into an armchair, Evanna took out her wand and whispered the incantation that Fred had used earlier, "Lumos."

To her delight, the tip of her wand lit up, just like Fred's had. Holding her wand in her left hand and her pencil in her right, she began to sketch out a pair of identical boys, with their arms around each other's shoulders, smiling mischievously.

"Is that us?"

Evanna jumped so harshly that her sketchbook and pencil fell to the floor. She whirled around, pointing her wand at the intruder, then exhaled with relief when she saw two familiar faces. "Don't scare me like that!" she admonished, picking up her things from the ground.

"Sorry," the Weasley twins chorused, sitting on either side of her. They were both examining the open page of her sketchbook.

"And, to answer your question, Fred," Evanna said, "yes, that is a drawing of you two."

"How do you know that I asked that question? It could've been George."

"Nice try, _George_ , but I can tell you two apart," Evanna said, folding her arms and looking smug.

Fred and George exchanged shocked looks. No one had ever been able to say who was George and who was Fred. Even their own family couldn't tell them apart! So how could this midget first year do it?

Evanna laughed at their dropped jaws. "Look, George is just a bit taller, and his voice is a bit deeper. Fred's face is slightly rounder, and his nose is slightly more upturned. George's lips are fuller and he opens his mouth a little wider when he speaks. Also, Fred almost always starts conversations and is just a tiny bit more outgoing. George seems to think about things more and follows Fred's lead, not that that's a bad thing," she added quickly, before smirking. "I could continue if you'd like."

"Wow," the boys breathed, staring at each other, trying to find all of the differences Evanna had pointed out.

"But why did you bother figuring out how to tell us apart?" George asked, taking in Evanna's features. Her messy, dark red hair, still tied in a braid which hung over her left shoulder . . . Her bright green eyes, which were shaped like almonds . . . Her lightning bolt shaped scar, which was sitting in the center of her forehead, standing out between where her hair split . . .

"Well, I couldn't have another incident like when we first met, could I?" Evanna asked, laughing fondly at the memory. Fred and George both smiled at the memory as well.

( _"I'm Fred!" "No, I'm Fred!" "Are you this confusing to all the new girls?" "Only the special ones!" "I'm not sure whether to take that as a compliment or an insult . . . So I'm taking it as a complinsult."_ )

But what Evanna said next made George's heart flutter in his chest.

"And, well, I care."

George stared at the younger girl in a daze as she continued. "I mean, you guys are my friends, and I know that even though you're twins, you aren't the same person. You deserve to have people in your life who care enough to tell."

Evanna had no way of knowing that she was the first person to think of it that way. She had no way of knowing that she had just become the twins' best friend by that one, seemingly trivial statement. She had no way of knowing that she had just won over George's heart.

Absolutely no way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna tossed in her sleep. She was having the strangest dream. She was wearing Professor Quirrell's turban, which kept talking to her, telling her she must transfer to Slytherin at once, because it was her destiny. Evanna told the turban she didn't want to be in Slytherin; it got heavier and heavier; she tried to pull it off but it tightened painfully — and there was Malfoy, laughing at her as she struggled with it — then Malfoy turned into the hook-nosed teacher, Snape, whose laugh became high and cold — there was a burst of green light and Evanna woke, sweating and shaking.

She pulled her knees up to her face, rocking back and forth on her mattress quietly, trying to get that green light out of her head. This was not the first time the mysterious green light had plagued her in nightmares, and generally after she woke, her scar began to burn, much like it was doing now. She almost always began crying softly when she woke, but this time she wasn't going to cry. She wasn't alone in the dormitory; there were other girls in there with her (considering it was the first year girls' dorm, that wasn't surprising) and she didn't want to risk waking them.

"Evanna?" came a tentative voice.

Evanna suppressed a groan. And she had been trying so hard not to wake anyone! She looked up at Parvati with tear-filled eyes. "What?"

Parvati had woke up to go to the washroom, and came back to see Evanna rocking back and forth on her bed, obviously distressed. Parvati was stunned that this hero — this girl who had defeated the darkest wizard of all times! — was crying. But, Parvati supposed, she hadn't even known about her fame until just recently, and perhaps she still didn't feel like a hero yet.

"Are you alright?" Parvati asked, taking a few shy steps towards the red haired girl.

Evanna, sensing the tension, patted the spot next to her on the bed. Parvati hesitantly sat down, the mattress squeaking slightly under the added weight. "Just a nightmare," Evanna whispered, her voice cracking somewhat.

"What was it about?" Parvati asked, sympathetically. She used to be subject to nightmares routinely when she was younger. Her twin sister, Padma, would have hug her reassuringly for ages before Parvati would finally drift back off the sleep. Then, her nightmares had slowly began to grow lesser, until they had disappeared completely.

Evanna's cheeks went red, and she looked away. "You'll think it's stupid."

"I won't," Parvati said, sincerely. Some of her nightmare could've fallen into the 'Stupid' category too.

"A green light. A green light and high-pitched laughter."

Parvati tilted her head, but didn't laugh, as Evanna had been expecting. She, instead, said, "Maybe it's a light from some sort of curse? I mean, lot's of spells have different light and maybe you're thinking of someone casting a spell."

Evanna felt a small smile sneak onto her lips. Parvati was probably right. She was thinking of something like that. She gave the darker skinned girl a hug, which Parvati hesitantly returned. "Thanks Parvati."

Parvati smiled softly. "You're welcome." She paused, looking around. "I think we better get to sleep, it must be around midnight. Good night, Evanna."

"Good night, Parvati. See you in the morning," Evanna replied, before snuggling back under her blankets, wondering what sorts of things would await her the next day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yay, I hope that was good! I know this chapter isn't super exciting, but it does show Evanna's personality and how she gets so close with the Weasley twins.
> 
> Please review, it brings me so much joy! ~Jayce


	3. Adventures in Magical Education

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 3: Adventures in Magical Education
> 
> A/N: Yes, onto chapter three! Or, for those familiar with foreign language, trois, tres, drei, tatlo, tre, 三, 세, the list goes on . . . (I'm sorry if these are incorrect, I got them all off Google translate, except for the French one, because I'm forced to learn French in school . . . :P)
> 
> Anyways, I made that new cover! I did! It's just Evanna's head, and I'll probably change it as the story goes on, but I just thought I'd make sure you guys knew how I imagined Evanna (you can imagine her however you like :D)

"There, look!"

"Where?"

"Next to the tall kid with the ginger hair."

"With the messy braid?"

"Did you see her face?"

"Did you see her _scar_?"

Evanna frowned, brushing her hair in front of her scar. She hadn't been _too_ bothered by the whispers at first, but they were getting annoying. Especially when she was trying to concentrate on finding her way to classes.

It wasn't easy to get around Hogwarts, with its a hundred and forty-two staircases, tricky doors, portraits that could move, and Evanna was sure the coats of armor could walk. The ghosts didn't help either, especially Peeves the Poltergeist, who liked to trick anybody and everybody. Even worse than Peeves, if that was possible, was the caretaker, Argus Filch. He didn't seem to like students at all, and his pet cat, Mrs. Norris, would help him catch students breaking the rules. Put just one toe out of line in front of her, and she'd whisk off for Filch, who'd appear, wheezing, two seconds later. Filch knew the secret passageways of the school better than anyone (except perhaps the Weasley twins) and could pop up as suddenly as any of the ghosts.

After avoiding all of that, there were the actual classes. They had Astronomy every Wednesday at midnight and three times a week they went out to the greenhouses behind the castle to study Herbology, with a dumpy little witch called Professor Sprout.

Easily the most boring class was History of Magic, which was the only one taught by a ghost. Professor Binns droned on and on while they scribbled down names and dates, and Evanna got some serious drawing time in. The next picture to grace the pages of her sketchbook was of Ron, one of her first best friends.

Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, was a tiny little wizard who had to stand on a pile of books to see over his desk. At the start of their first class he took the roll call, and when he reached Evanna's name he gave an excited squeak and toppled out of sight. Evanna had gone red and quickly went over to help the tiny teacher back up.

Professor McGonagall was again different. Evanna had been quite right to think she wasn't a teacher to cross. Strict and clever, she gave them a talking-to the moment they sat down in her first class. "Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts," she said. "Anyone messing around in my class will leave and not come back. You have been warned."

Then she changed her desk into a pig and back again. They were all very impressed and couldn't wait to get started, but soon realized they weren't going to be changing the furniture into animals for a long time. After taking a lot of complicated notes, they were each given a match and started trying to turn it into a needle. By the end of the lesson, only Hermione Granger had made significant difference to her match (though Evanna could swear that hers was a bit thinner than when she began). Professor McGonagall showed the class how it had gone all silver and pointy and gave Hermione a rare smile.

Evanna practically skipped up to the door of their Defense Against the Dark Arts class. She was looking forward to it the most, along with everyone else in their year. Ron had been struggling to keep up with her quick skipping, but she held the door open for him, waiting patiently for the freckle-faced boy to catch up.

Slipping into a seat next to Ron and another Gryffindor boy in her year, Seamus, she crinkled her nose at a smell that wafted through the entire classroom. "Garlic?" she asked the two boys next to her, but neither had a good answer (though she had to give Ron points for suggesting it was to ward off a vampire that Quirrell had met in Romania and was afraid would be coming back to get him one of these days). But her face lit up when Professor Quirrell began to speak.

"W-Welcome to D-Defense Against the D-D-Dark Arts!" Quirrell announced, still stammering as always. "I'm here to t-teach you about n-nasty things like v-v-vampires! In fact, th-this turban was g-given to me by an African prince as a th-thank-you for getting rid of a t-t-troublesome z-zombie."

Seamus's hand was in the air within seconds. "How'd you fight it off?" he asked after Quirrell had called on him, clear exaltation in his voice.

"W-Well, you see . . ." Quirrell trailed off, his cheeks starting to look pink. That was enough for Seamus to lose any excitement that he previously had. "A b-b-beautiful d-day, isn't it?" Quirrell asked instead. His hasty subject change just confirmed what Evanna had been thinking; Quirrell was a total fraud.

But why was he a teacher here? What could his personal gain be? He obviously had little or no interest (or education) in the subject, considering all he talked about was how horrible vampires were. Generally, for a person as dim in the subject as Quirrell was to receive a job like this, they'd have to beg long and hard. Why would Quirrell need to get into Hogwarts so badly? And these questions were what sparked a tiny bit of suspicion in Evanna's mind about the stuttering teacher.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"He's not so bad — I mean, at least the work shouldn't be too hard," Ron persisted as the duo headed to their Potions class, trying to brighten his best mate's mood. She had been so looking forward to their DADA class that to find out it was a complete waste of time kind of put a damper on her mood.

Evanna, however, wasn't convinced of his words. "I'll bet Fred and George are right about him keeping garlic under his turban, the _idiot_ ," she muttered under her breath, flipping her dark red braid of hair over her shoulder as she often did.

"Evanna," Ron said seriously, jumping in front of her. They both stopped walking, Evanna's bright green eyes looking at Ron with annoyance (and a bit of curiosity). "You are going to hate Snape _so_ much more."

Evanna raised a dubious crimson-coloured eyebrow, and walked around her friend, continuing their trek to Snape's classroom. "No, Evanna, listen. I'm serious. Quirrell is small potatoes compared to Snape."

"Your point?" Evanna asked grumpily. She had seen Snape and there was no doubt he looked far more evil than Quirrell, but she knew better than to judge a book by its cover.

"I just wanted to warn you before . . ." Ron trailed off. He had the unfortunate experience of witnessing Evanna explode one time and he really didn't want his friend to get into too much trouble.

Evanna gave him a look and pushed past him into the classroom. Sitting beside Ron and (to Ron's dismay) Hermione, Evanna waited patiently for the lesson to begin, allowing her grouchy frown to twist into an effective poker face (surprising Ron, as she was usually smiling so widely that he hadn't believed she would've been able to make such a deadpanned expression).

Snape, like Flitwick, started the class by taking the roll call, and, again like Flitwick, he paused at Evanna's name.

"Ah, Evanna Potter. Our newest celebrity."

Nobody said a word at this (unless you counted the Slytherin's stifled laughter), though the corners Evanna's mouth twitched angrily. She hadn't _asked_ to be famous! Ron put a hand on her arm, trying to settle her down. This seemed to work, though Evanna's eyes followed Snape as he began to pace in front of the class.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making," he began. He spoke in barely more than a whisper, but they caught every word — like Professor McGonagall, Snape had the gift of keeping a class silent without effort. "As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses . . . I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death — if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."

Evanna noticed how Hermione's expression changed to one of determination, obviously wanting to prove that she was anything but a dunderhead (in which case, Evanna would have to wholeheartedly agree).

"Potter!" said Snape suddenly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Evanna jumped at being called on, but quickly regained her poker face, surreptitiously glancing at Ron, who looked as stumped as she was; Hermione's hand had shot into the air.

"I don't know, sir," said Evanna, as coolly as she could muster.

Snape's lips curled into a sneer, ignoring Hermione's hand, which Evanna thought was very rude. "Let's try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?"

Hermione stretched her hand as high into the air as it would go without her leaving her seat, but Evanna didn't have the faintest idea what a bezoar was. She tried not to look at Malfoy and his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, who were shaking with laughter. She knew if she did, her glare might kill them, and she didn't want that to happen — at least, not with so many witnesses.

"I don't know, sir."

"Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh, Potter?"

Evanna's poker face was beginning to fade, slowly being replaced by a hateful expression. She _had_ read _all_ the textbooks, but who was he to expect her to memorize all the tiny details? Why was Snape picking on her alone? What had she done to earn this?

Snape was still ignoring Hermione's quivering hand. "What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?" At this, Hermione stood up, her hand stretching toward the dungeon ceiling.

When Evanna said nothing (struggling to keep herself in check), Snape smirked. "Tut, tut — clearly, fame isn't everything."

"Clearly, Hermione knows the answer. It's a shame you didn't ask her," Evanna finally spat, her emotions getting the better of her. A few people laughed; Evanna caught Seamus's eye, and Seamus winked.

Snape, however, was not pleased.

"Sit down," he snapped at Hermione. "For your information, Potter, asphodel and wormwood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death. A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it will save you from most poisons. As for monkshood and wolfsbane, they are the same plant, which also goes by the name of aconite. Well? Why aren't you all copying that down?"

There was a sudden rummaging for quills and parchment. Over the noise, Snape said, "And a point will be taken from Gryffindor House for your cheek, Potter."

"My cheek did nothing; it was all my mouth!" Evanna said, with a smirk as people began to laugh again.

"Another point!"

Dean leaned in from behind Evanna to whisper in her ear, "Worth it."

Evanna began to smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Cheer up," Ron said, "Snape's always taking points off Fred and George."

"For valid reasons, I can imagine!" Evanna yelled. "Look Ron, I don't care about the points! It's cool to win, but life doesn't revolve around being on top! The only reason I'm so _freaking_ mad is because of all that _crap_ Snape was giving me!"

Ron looked slightly scared; Evanna was looking dangerous. The normally sweet girl was now absolutely livid. Of course, this was all due to Snape. He had blamed quite a number of things on her that she couldn't have possibly been responsible for, including when Neville had accidentally brewed a potion wrong, giving him boils all over his skin.

Evanna suddenly stopped yelling when Fred and George started to walk alongside them. "By all means, don't stop on our account, Evanna," Fred smirked. "Continue your tirade."

George looked slightly more sympathetic. "But maybe tell us what (or who) might be the cause?"

"Snape," Evanna and Ron replied together (though Evanna was seething and Ron was more matter-of-fact).

"Ah, yes, the greasy git," George laughed.

"He's worse than just that!" Evanna seethed. "He's a-a-a — !"

"Careful, you're starting to sound like Quirrell," Fred joked.

"The word I'm thinking of is too terrible to say!" Evanna said dramatically. The three Weasley boys laughed, then they began spouting out swear word suggestions. Evanna, deciding to be even more dramatic, placed her hands over her ears and trying to act like the words were hurting her, but her laughter was a dead giveaway of her acting.

Unfortunately, Professor McGonagall had passed just then, and looked horror-stricken at the words that the Weasleys were spouting. "Frederick! George! Ronald! I cannot believe your vulgarity! One point off each!"

"I can believe it," Evanna piped up, helpfully. McGonagall gave her a stern look, but said nothing more, walking briskly away.

"Thanks," Evanna said, hugging all three boys at once. They looked awkward, being squished together by a girl much smaller than any of them (except perhaps Ron, who was only a bit taller than Evanna was).

"Er, what for?" Ron asked, as a blush covered his freckles (his older brothers couldn't tease him, as they were nearly positive that they were red in the face too).

"For making me smile and laugh," Evanna replied, finally releasing them. "It might not seem like much, but it really means the world to me."

She pulled Ron away, so they could get to their next class on time, failing to notice the soft smile on George's face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Ah, Evanna meeting various teachers and getting suspicious and annoyed! I needed to show that Evanna's not just a sweet innocent little angel; she can get pretty miffed if you provoke her. Also, that she's smarter than she lets on.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	4. First Experiences in the Air

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 4: First Experiences in the Air
> 
> A/N: Two chapters in a day! You ducks are lucky that I'm on such a roll! You lucky ducks might even get ANOTHER! (Probably not, but I can almost guarantee that there'll be another one tomorrow.)

Evanna had lowered her expectations for flying lessons, even before Fred and George had complained about the deficiencies of the school brooms.

"Some vibrate if you fly too high!"

"And some always veer left!"

But after the whole Defense Against the Dark Arts incident (all due to the stupidity of Professor Quirrell), Evanna had decided that, even though she had wanted to learn to fly ever since she first came to Hogwarts, she would keep her expectations nice and low, to be either pleasantly surprised or not quite as disappointed.

So, as she took her place next to a broom and commanded it to rise into her hand, she hadn't expected it to happen.

But it did.

She stared in awe at the broomstick in her hand, a smile creeping across her face as she realized that she had been one of the few to actually move the broom from the ground. She didn't gloat though, instead she helped Neville with his broom, which had refused to move for him (and by help, she meant picking the broom up off the ground, handing it to him with a wink).

Unfortunately, just as the class had started, it had finished. Neville was apparently not meant to fly, for as soon as his feet were off the ground, his broom kept rising until he finally fell off at twenty feet in the air and broke his wrist. Madam Hooch ordered them to keep to the ground, which was a rule Evanna had been planning to obey, until she saw what Malfoy had picked up.

"Look!" said Malfoy, darting forward and snatching something out of the grass. "It's that stupid thing Longbottom's gran sent him." The Remembrall glittered in the sun as he held it up.

"Give that here please, Malfoy, it's not yours," Evanna said politely.

He either didn't hear her or pretended not to as he smiled nastily. "I think I'll leave it somewhere for Longbottom to find — how about up a tree?"

"Give it here!" Evanna yelled, the politeness gone from her voice. This time, Malfoy definitely noticed.

He jumped on his broom and flew high into the sky. "Come and take it from me, why don't you, Potter?" he taunted, waving the Remembrall at her.

Evanna sighed as if she had only just been arguing with someone and had given up. Mounting her broom, she readied herself to take off, but Hermione grabbed her shoulder. "No, Evanna, you can't! You'll get us all in trouble!"

"And Malfoy won't?" was Evanna's retort, before flying fast away from the ground. Hermione had to admit, she couldn't argue with that logic.

Evanna felt freer than she ever had as she flew through the sky. She nearly forgot the reason she had come up. She just wanted to stay in the air forever. For some reason, it felt amazingly natural to be off the ground. But then, she turned to Malfoy, a faint smirk on her face when she saw the surprise on his.

"Thought I couldn't fly?" she asked, spinning around in the air as a show of talent. "Now, just give me — "

"Fetch!" Malfoy yelled suddenly, chucking the Remembrall in the direction of the castle.

Evanna didn't have time to admire Malfoy's amazing throwing arm, because as soon as he had yelled this, she turned and streaked after the tiny ball. It was a clear ball, so that it was practically invisible, but she could see the sun glinting off it. She urged her broom to go faster, worrying as the ball got closer and closer to the ground. But then she had to worry about herself, as she got closer and closer to the hard, stone wall of the castle. She gritted her teeth together and did something amazingly stupid.

She dived.

Heading straight for the ground now, she reached out a hand and snatched the Remembrall from the air. Pulling up faster than anybody should've been able to (and barely a foot above the ground too!), she slowed her broom to a stop, stumbling off it into the arms of Parvati and Lavender. They helped her sit down, looking worried for her (probably something to do with how pale and shaky she was) and also excited (probably to do with the fact that she had not only caught the nearly invisible ball, but had survived that dive).

"EVANNA POTTER!"

Her heart sank faster than she'd just dived. Professor McGonagall was running toward them. She was too shaky to stand just yet, so she sat, catching her breath and bracing herself for punishment.

"Never — in all my time at Hogwarts — " Professor McGonagall was almost speechless with shock, and her glasses flashed furiously, "— how dare you — might have broken your neck — "

"It wasn't her fault, Professor — "

"Be quiet, Miss Patil."

"But Malfoy — "

"That's enough, Mr. Weasley. Potter, follow me, now."

And Evanna, too tired to resist, followed the professor willingly away from her class.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Potter, this is Oliver Wood. Wood — I've found you a Seeker."

Evanna gave her Transfiguration teacher a flummoxed look. When Professor McGonagall had pulled her away from the rest of the first year flying class, she had been questionless to the fact that she would be punished. She had been caught flying! She had disobeyed a teacher!

But instead, Professor McGonagall had taken her into an empty classroom, with Fred and George's friend, Oliver Wood, and announced that Evanna was about to become a Seeker — whatever that was.

"Are you serious, Professor?" Oliver Wood asked, looking Evanna up and down. This girl — this tiny first year who Fred and George had introduced him to — didn't seem to be Quidditch material . . . But Oliver shouldn't be one to judge; she didn't look like she could defeat the darkest wizard of all times either. Just because her hair was forever bedraggled and she looked like she had lived under some stairs for the majority of her life (which Oliver was sure wasn't the case), didn't mean she couldn't be a great Seeker. In fact, she did have the build for it . . .

"Absolutely," said Professor McGonagall crisply. "The girl's a natural. I've never seen anything like it. Was that your first time on a broomstick, Potter?"

Evanna nodded mutely, trying not to look confused. Professor McGonagall had actually thought her flying had been good?

"She caught that thing in her hand after a fifty-foot dive," Professor McGonagall told Wood, who was starting to look giddy. "Didn't even scratch herself. Charlie Weasley couldn't have done it."

Evanna suddenly remembered how Ron had said that his older brother, Charlie, had been Gryffindor's best Seeker for a long time. Glancing at Wood, she saw he was now looking as though all his dreams had come true at once.

"Ever seen a game of Quidditch, Potter?" he asked excitedly.

"Wood's captain of the Gryffindor team," Professor McGonagall explained.

"She's just the build for a Seeker, too," Wood realized, now walking around Evanna and staring at her. "Light — speedy — we'll have to get her a decent broom, Professor — a Nimbus Two Thousand or a Cleansweep Seven, I'd say."

"I shall speak to Professor Dumbledore and see if we can't bend the first-year rule. Heaven knows, we need a better team than last year. Flattened in that last match by Slytherin, I couldn't look Severus Snape in the face for weeks . . ."

Professor McGonagall peered sternly over her glasses at Evanna.

"I want to hear you're training hard, Potter, or I may change my mind about punishing you."

Then she suddenly smiled.

"Your father would have been proud," she said. "He was an excellent Quidditch player himself."

Evanna stared up at the professor in awe. Her father had played Quidditch?

Wood noticed Evanna's awed look, and beckoned for her to follow him. "This," he said, when they'd reached their destination, "is the trophy room. And this," he pulled her over to look at one trophy in particular, "is one of the seldom years that Gryffindor won."

Evanna ran her finger under his name. _Chaser James Potter_. She smiled faintly, willing herself not to cry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Evanna, Ron, Hermione, and Neville ran for their lives, hoping that Filch the caretaker wouldn't catch them out of bed, Evanna couldn't help but wonder how the duo had become a quartet. She swore she was going to kill Ron for this, or at least seriously injure him. Her day had been going so well before he had intervened!

After she had saved Neville's Remembrall from shattering into a million pieces at the hands of Draco Malfoy, everyone had thought she would definitely be expelled for flying when Madam Hooch had distinctly told everyone not to. But instead, she was pleasantly surprised when Professor McGonagall had appointed her as the new Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. (The youngest player to make it on a team in over a century!) But then, Ron just had to go and open his big mouth, signing her up for a wizard duel with Malfoy. (She could have politely declined and kept her dignity, but noooo!) Obviously, Hermione had overheard and been worried and while trying to stop them from going, accidentally locking herself from Gryffindor tower, so that she had to accompany them. Then they had met Neville along the way, who had also been locked out, and it would've been rude to leave him stuck there, so he came along too. Now, they found that it had been a trap set by Malfoy, so they were running down a deserted corridor to try and escape detention and the deduction of points.

"This is it!" Ron moaned, as they pushed helplessly at the last door of the corridor, which also happened to be locked. "We're done for! This is the end!" They could hear footsteps, Filch running as fast as he could.

"Oh, move over," Hermione snarled. She wrenched Evanna's wand from her grasp, tapped the lock, and whispered, "Alohomora!"

The door swung open with ease, and Evanna hugged Hermione tightly once they had safely entered the room. Hermione looked a bit awkward as Evanna hugged her, but got over it quickly as she, Ron, and Neville listened at the door.

Evanna, on the other hand, was nearly ready to faint, and leaned against the wall, to calm herself down. But she couldn't properly calm herself when she saw what else was in the room with them.

It was a dog, which would've been okay (Evanna loved dogs), except for another extremely dangerous factor. It was huge. Not like a Great Dane, no, it was far bigger. It was as wide as the corridor they were in (once Evanna realized that it was a corridor, not a room, she could've slapped herself; it was the forbidden corridor on the third floor!), and its three giant heads grazed the ceiling. Oh, didn't she mention? It had three heads too.

She gave a piercing scream, causing the other three to turn around, noticing the dog for the first time. She avoided its six eyes and three snarling mouths (complete with enormous pools of slobber), looking instead at the trapdoor it stood over. Why would there be a trapdoor in the center of a corridor? Was it protecting something?

But she quickly decided that wasn't important; she'd much rather try and stay alive at the moment. Grabbing Neville's hand, she pulled him after Ron and Hermione, the four of them tumbling out the door and racing back to the Gryffindor tower.

Once safely inside the Gryffindor common room, they each plopped down into armchairs, each with a completely different expression. Evanna looked like she might faint, but was overall excited. Ron seemed to blame Hermione for some reason, and she seemed to think the same about him, because they glared at each other irritatedly. Neville looked like he may never speak again, his lips were pressed together so tightly on his pale face. He headed quickly up to bed.

"What the bloody hell are they thinking, keeping that _thing_ there?!" Ron asked finally.

"Honestly, don't you use your eyes?" Hermione asked exasperatedly, as if he should've been focused on anything but its three heads. "Didn't you notice what it was standing on?"

"A trapdoor," Evanna said quickly, to spare her friend's embarrassment. "Obviously it's guarding something."

Ron and Evanna shared a look. When they had visited Hagrid earlier that week, there had been a news article about a break-in at Gringotts, the wizarding bank in Diagon Alley, but nothing had been stolen because the vault had been emptied by Hagrid on Evanna's birthday, before the thief had a chance to steal it. What could that grubby package have held that needed to be guarded by a three-headed dog?

Hermione stood up. "Now if you two don't mind, I'm going to bed before either of you come up with another clever idea to get us killed — or worse, _expelled_."

"She needs to sort out her priorities," Ron muttered, watching the bushy haired girl disappear up the spiral staircase to the first year girls' dormitory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I know that the chat between Oliver, Professor McGonagall, and Evanna was kind of boring (though I tried to make it a bit more interesting by delving into Oliver's mind a bit), but I needed to make the chapter longer, so I added that. I hope this satisfies you!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	5. Bestest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 5: Bestest
> 
> A/N: Haha, okay, one headcanon of mine is that Fred always makes up words (that kinda sound real, but they're not, like 'bestest') and George is just always like, "That's not a word, Gred." and Fred will like, wait five seconds, and then say, "*insert fake word here* is now officially a word." This is what my friends and I do, like bestest, confuzzled, specialer, (the list goes on) are now official words ;)
> 
> Also, I'm most likely going to post another chapter or two today, so keep an eye on this fic (if you like it)

Evanna had always known that Ron disliked Hermione, though he hadn't exactly admitted it out loud (mostly because Evanna was trying to be nice to the bookworm, and maybe help her be nice back). But after Charms one day, Ron snapped. It might have had something to do with the fact that Hermione had corrected him quite rudely, but he was in a very sour mood.

" _It's LeviOsa, not LevioSA!_ It's no wonder no one can stand her," he said, after doing that spot on Hermione impression, "she's a nightmare, honestly. "

Evanna opened her mouth to speak, about to say that Hermione had only been trying to help, when the girl in question pushed past them, sniffling and in tears. Evanna glared at Ron. He shifted uncomfortably under her gaze, knowing that it had been his fault Hermione was crying.

He looked up to see Evanna darting away. "Hey, where are you going?" He was given no reply, though he had a good guess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna followed Hermione into the girls' bathroom. Evanna knocked on the stall where Hermione had locked herself in. "Hermione?"

"G-go away!" came the tear-filled voice from the other side.

"I will not go away," Evanna said, standing her ground. "Hermione, I know that Ron upset you, but what he said isn't true — "

"Yes it is!" Hermione spat back. "Of course it's true! Nobody wants to be my friend! I'm just an ugly know-it-all!"

"Hermione!" Evanna cried. "I've been trying to get on your good side for ages!"

There was a short pause before Hermione asked, "You have?"

"You know, for such a smart person, you are so oblivious sometimes," Evanna sighed. "Yes, I have. Haven't you noticed that I've been nice to you?"

"I suppose, but you're nice to _everyone_!"

"But not everyone is nice to _you_."

There was no reply, so Evanna continued. "Hermione, I am going to be brutally honest with you. You are the most brilliant person I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. You can also be very blunt, and not in a good way. I want to be your friend, but I also want you to have more friends than just me. Could I help you be less tactless?"

"Tactless? But I always plan everything out, I'm super tactful!" Hermione shot back. " _Honestly_!"

"See, that's exactly what I mean! Getting so angry with me right there wasn't very nice, especially when I'm trying to help. Also, when you speak, you do make yourself sound quite conceited. You make other people feel dumb by not knowing the things you do. Like when Ron didn't notice the trapdoor under the three-headed dog."

There was another pause. Evanna could almost _hear_ Hermione blushing.

"I suppose I could use your help, Evanna," Hermione decided finally, opening the stall door.

Evanna smiled kindly. "Alright, I just hope you don't mind me helping you clean yourself up first."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If someone had told Hermione that she would make two new friends by going head to head with a twelve-foot mountain troll, she would've had a hard time believing them. For one, why would she be fighting a troll anyways? Another, why would _they_ be fighting a troll? But when Ronald Weasley had realized that Evanna Potter and Hermione Granger were completely oblivious to the troll that was lumbering in the dungeons, he knew he had to go warn them. Of course, as luck would have it, the troll had found itself in the same girls' bathroom that Evanna and Hermione were in. So, Ron, Hermione, and Evanna had to keep it from killing them and, in doing so, they somehow became best friends.

Hermione had never realized that, before Hogwarts, Evanna hadn't had any friends. From the books she had read (and she had read quite a few), Evanna had been made out to be some sort of brilliant-wizarding-hero-baby-genius! But in reality, she had never even known that magic existed, let alone that she had defeated the darkest wizard of all time. Plus, she wasn't pure-blood supremacist as Hermione had initially assumed, but a very sweet girl, who cared about practically everyone else, and didn't think very highly of herself at all. Hermione was grateful to have her as a friend.

As Hermione was checking Ron's Charms homework (Evanna preferred to keep her homework to herself), Evanna was admiring her new broomstick with Fred and George. Professor McGonagall had given Evanna the newest and fastest model when she had become Gryffindor Seeker; a Nimbus Two Thousand.

"The newest — "

"And fastest — "

"And bestest — "

"Bestest isn't a word, Freddie!"

"It is now, Georgie!"

Evanna laughed at the twins. She pulled her broom towards her, holding it close. "My precious," she hissed, stroking it. She gave the twins the evil eye, but couldn't keep up her act any longer when she saw the shock on their faces. Laughing, she tossed the broom into George's hands. "Of course you guys can fly it, I was kidding. But only after the game tomorrow. I want the first fly."

Her grin faded a bit as she said this. She was sort of nervous about their first game. What if she screwed up? Fred put a hand on her shoulder, looking solemnly into her green eyes. "I'm sure you'll be the bestest, Vanna."

Evanna let out a loud hoot of laughter, her nerves beginning to fade away again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna liked the people on the Quidditch team.

The three Chasers, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell, were really nice to her. The Keeper (and Captain of the team), Oliver Wood, was pretty nice, but also a bit obsessed with the sport. The Beaters were Fred and George, who were definitely some of her best friends. And finally, herself, as the team's Seeker.

Wood cleared his throat, ready to make his speech.

"Okay, men," he said.

"And women," Angelina added.

"And women," Wood agreed. "This is it."

"The big one," said Fred.

"The one we've all been waiting for," said George.

"We know Oliver's speech by heart," Fred told Evanna (who was giggling), "we were on the team last year."

"Shut up, you two," said Wood. "This is the best team Gryffindor's had in years. We're going to win. I know it." He paused, giving them all a glare. "Right. It's time. Good luck, all of you."

"Ready, Vanna?" George whispered in her ear, seeing the girl's pale face. She said nothing, but gave him a firm nod.

On the field, Evanna's heart leapt as she saw Ron, Hermione, Neville, Dean, and Seamus waving a banner that said _Potter for President_ , with a lion (courtesy of Dean; she would have to draw with him sometime) and the words flashing different colours (courtesy of Hermione). She blew exaggerated kisses at them from where she hovered just above the ground.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle, and they were off. Evanna shot upwards, fast as she could, then stopped abruptly, hovering in the air, searching the arena for a little golden ball while she listened to the commentary.

"And the Quaffle is taken immediately by Angelina Johnson of Gryffindor — what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and rather attractive, too — "

"JORDAN!"

"Sorry, Professor."

The Weasley twins' friend, Lee Jordan, was doing the commentary for the match, closely watched by Professor McGonagall.

"And she's really belting along up there, a neat pass to Alicia Spinnet, a good find of Oliver Wood's, last year only a reserve — back to Johnson and — no, the Slytherins have taken the Quaffle, Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint gains the Quaffle and off he goes — Flint flying like an eagle up there — he's going to sc — no, stopped by an excellent move by Gryffindor Keeper Wood and the Gryffindors take the Quaffle — that's Chaser Katie Bell of Gryffindor there, nice dive around Flint, off up the field and — OUCH — that must have hurt, hit in the back of the head by a Bludger — Quaffle taken by the Slytherins — that's Adrian Pucey speeding off toward the goal posts, but he's blocked by a second Bludger — sent his way by Fred or George Weasley, can't tell which — nice play by the Gryffindor Beater, anyway, and Johnson back in possession of the Quaffle, a clear field ahead and off she goes — she's really flying — dodges a speeding Bludger — the goal posts are ahead — come on, now, Angelina — Keeper Bletchley dives — misses — GRYFFINDORS SCORE!"

Evanna let out a whoop of joy, doing a couple of loop-the-loops. "Nice one, Angelina!" she called over the wind, giving the Chaser a thumbs up. But then, a Bludger flew at her, so she dodged, letting Fred Weasley chase after it. "Are Bludgers called that because they're out for blood? Because that makes me nervous!" Evanna asked him as he flew past, but she got no answer, just laughter.

"Slytherin in possession," Lee Jordan was saying, "Chaser Pucey ducks two Bludgers, two Weasleys, and Chaser Bell, and speeds toward the — wait a moment — was that the Snitch?"

Evanna sped towards where she, too, had seen the little flash of gold in the air. Unfortunately, Slytherin Seeker Terence Higgs had seen it as well. They were neck and neck, hurtling towards the Snitch — all the Chasers seemed to have forgotten what they were supposed to be doing as they hung in midair to watch.

_WHAM!_

Evanna hung onto her broom for dear life. Marcus Flint had blocked her purposefully, sending her off course. Struggling to regain control of the broom, she had almost collided with a Bludger, but George had hit it away just in time.

"Foul!" screamed the Gryffindors.

Madam Hooch spoke angrily to Flint and then ordered a free shot at the goal posts for Gryffindor. But in all the confusion, of course, the Golden Snitch had disappeared from sight again.

Down in the stands, Dean Thomas was yelling, "Send him off, ref! Red card!" Evanna laughed as he referenced the Muggle sport. She also laughed at Lee's failed attempt at not taking sides.

"So — after that obvious and disgusting bit of cheating — "

"Jordan!" growled Professor McGonagall.

"I mean, after that open and revolting foul . . ."

" _Jordan, I'm warning you_ — "

"All right, all right. Flint nearly kills the Gryffindor Seeker, which could happen to anyone, I'm sure, so a penalty to Gryffindor, taken by Spinnet, who puts it away, no trouble, and we continue play, Gryffindor still in possession."

Evanna's broom suddenly lurched forwards without her consent. Her eyes widened comically as it happened again, nearly tossing her off the broom completely. Clinging on for dear life, she called to Katie Bell as she passed, "Are brooms supposed to get sick?!" Either Katie didn't hear her or thought she was only kidding, because there was no response.

Evanna had no control over the broom anymore; all she could do was grip it tightly, trying to keep her seat as it zigzagged through the air. She was screaming now, as the broom gave a wild jerk and she swung off it. She dangled from it, holding on with only one hand.

Fred and George had tried to get close, to help her off the rampant broomstick, but it was no use. The broom would just keep going jumping higher. They finally settled to circling underneath her, ready to catch her, should she fall.

Evanna felt more frightened than she had ever been in her life so far. Then she saw Snape, his robes catching on fire. He knocked over Quirrell as he hastily got to his feet, stamping out the flames. And then her broom was still.

The sudden stillness had shocked her so much that she fell, screaming with her broom still in hand, right into the arms of George Weasley. She clung to him, tears forming in the corners of her eyes, fear obvious on her face. Then she remembered why she was in the air in the first place. Wiping her eyes quickly, she hopped onto her broom, and kissed George on the cheek before shooting off after a glimmer of gold near the ground.

A gasp rippled through the stands. Her sudden dive had shocked everyone almost as much as her broom fiasco had. But as she tumbled off her broom, onto solid ground, she shocked them even more by choking. The Golden Snitch dropped out of her mouth into her open palm. Holding it up triumphantly, the crowd went wild.

Fred and George lifted her up onto their shoulders. "You were the bestest," George said, grinning at her with a faint blush colouring his cheeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So how did you like that chapter? Friendships are formed, Snitches are caught, and words are added to the Fred-tionary!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	6. Fun in the Snow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 6: Fun in the Snow
> 
> A/N: Yay, a second chapter for you guys! This chapter is, as the title implies, set in the wintertime. That means snowball fights, Christmas, and the Mirror of Erised! I hope you enjoy ;D

Evanna still wasn't sure who had jinxed her broom; Snape or Quirrell. Unlike Ron and Hermione, who were thoroughly convinced that Snape was behind it, Evanna had seen them both lose eye contact with her broom at the same time. Plus, the curse hadn't thrown her off the broom completely, so the likeliness that someone had also been anti-jinxing it was high. Either way, she had a deep hatred for them both, so had no trouble agreeing to go with the Weasley twins to bewitch snowballs to bounce off the back of Quirrell's turban (the three of them were punished, but it was so worth it).

But even with the anticipation of the holidays coming just around the corner, Hermione, Evanna, and Ron spent almost every day in the library. They were searching for someone. Hagrid had let slip that the three-headed dog (Fluffy, apparently was its name) was guarding something and that it was only for Dumbledore and a man named Nicolas Flamel to know. So, they spent all their time between classes searching for the man, but he wasn't in any of the books they had looked in.

Evanna was very close to giving up. She had decided that once the holidays had started, she would get out her poor neglected broom, and let Fred and George have those rides that they were always pestering her about ("But you _promised_ , Vanna!" "Yeah, we remember! You said — " "Would you two shut up for two seconds?!"), because they were really getting nowhere in the library. But she had also promised Hermione to keep looking for any signs of Flamel. ("You will keep looking while I'm away, won't you? And send me an owl if you find anything." "And you could ask your parents if they know who Flamel is. It'd be safe to ask them." "Very safe, as they're both dentists." Evanna had laughed at this, knowing that the likeliness of her parents knowing anything was very slim.)

But on the first day of the holidays, Evanna decided that she had the whole holidays to look for Flamel, so she grabbed her Nimbus and the twins, and they went out in the snow together.

"WOOHOO!" Fred had gotten his turn first, and was reluctant to get off. "THIS BROOM IS AMAZING!"

George just rolled his eyes at his twin, even though he knew he would probably be doing the same thing. Evanna just laughed at Fred's antics, as he tried to hang from the broom like a sloth. "If you break my broom, I'll break you!" she called up, with a twinkle in her eyes.

"So, why have you been in the library so much lately?" George asked, as Fred finally touched down on the snowy ground. Fred's ears perked up with curiosity, looking at Evanna.

Evanna shrugged. Neither twin seemed to buy it.

"Oh, come on, Vanna!" Fred said, nudging her with her own broomstick. "You, Granger, and ickle Ronniekins haven't been going in just for fun! Well, maybe Granger would, but definitely not you or Ron."

"Fine, but you can _not_ tell _anybody_!" Evanna said, pointing her finger in each of their faces, with a stern expression.

The twins nodded. "We solemnly swear we won't!" they chanted together.

Evanna folded her arms suspiciously, but decided to tell them. They were her friends (she might even go as far as to say best friends), they wouldn't go advertising her secrets. "Look, have you ever gone to the forbidden corridor on the third floor?"

The boys glanced at each other and shook their heads. Evanna was taken aback.

" _You?_ The infamous Weasley twins? Not breaking a rule?" Evanna asked, staring at them incredulously.

Simultaneous shrugs. "Never got around to it."

Evanna rolled her eyes. "Well, there's a three-headed dog there — it's absolutely massive! Hagrid named it Fluffy, accordingly." Fred and George stifled their laughter. "But it's guarding something, which is why it's there in the first place. Hagrid let slip that the only two people who had authority to know are Dumbledore and someone named Nicolas Flamel, whoever that it. So we've been looking up Mr. Flamel, trying to figure out what exactly is hidden there."

"So you just want to know what it's guarding?" George asked. "No alternative reasons?"

"Well," Evanna sighed, "we think someone is trying to steal whatever it is. My two prime suspects are Quirrell and Snape."

" _Quirrell_?" Now it was the boys' turn to look incredulous. Fred couldn't help but repress some laughter. "As in, s-s-stuttering P-Professor Q-Quirrell?"

"Yes! Now go for your flight, George, before I change my mind about letting you on at all!"

George did as he was told, grabbing the broom from his twin, but he couldn't help but look back at Evanna, who was glaring at them angrily.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna hadn't been expecting presents really. After not getting any presents for ten years, she had lowered her expectations. But this year, when she woke up on Christmas morning and saw a small pile of packages by the foot of her bed, she nearly gave a shriek of joy.

She wrapped herself in her robe and brushed her dark red hair into a braid before grabbing her presents up in her arms and heading down to the common room to meet to Weasley boys. "Merry Christmas, Evanna!" Ron yawned when she plopped herself on the couch next to him, putting her packages on the coffee table in front of them.

"Merry Christmas, Ron," Evanna replied, staring in awe at her presents. Her pile was much small than Ron's, but she didn't care; _she actually had presents!_

She picked up the top parcel. It was wrapped in thick brown paper and scrawled across it was _To Evanna, from Hagrid_. Inside was a roughly cut wooden flute. Hagrid had obviously whittled it himself. Evanna blew it — it sounded a bit like an owl.

She ignored the note from her aunt and uncle; all they had given her was a fifty pence piece, which was useless in the wizarding world.

Then she opened a present from Ron's mum, Mrs. Weasley. It was thick, hand-knitted sweater in emerald green, with a large yellow E on it, and a large box of homemade fudge. She immediately put on the sweater, smiling widely. It was the softest, nicest sweater she had ever owned. The Dursleys had only ever given her Dudley's old clothes, which were far too large for her, and uncomfortable, considering she was a girl and he was a boy. She also shoved a piece of fudge into her mouth; it was delicious.

The next present was from Hermione. It was a large box of Chocolate Frogs. She had also included a very nice note, which made Evanna smile as she read it.

She grabbed another present, which had _To Vanna, from your favourite Weasleys ;)_ Evanna chuckled as she opened the gift to find some Sugar Quills and a Nose-Biting Teacup. She let the teacup bite her nose, giggling as she forced it to let go. "I think I'm going to name you Bob!" she announced, causing Ron to give her a strange look, which she ignored as she opened her last present.

Something fluid and silvery gray went slithering to the floor where it lay in gleaming folds. Evanna picked the shining, silvery cloth off the floor. It was strange to the touch, like water woven into material. She soon realized that it was a cloak, so she threw it around her shoulders.

Ron gave a yelp of surprise. "Where'd your body go?!"

Evanna looked down at her feet, but they were gone. She dashed to the mirror. Sure enough, her reflection looked back at her, just her head suspended in midair, her body completely invisible. She pulled the cloak over her head and her reflection vanished completely.

"There's a note!" said Ron suddenly. "A note fell out of it!"

Evanna pulled off the cloak and seized the letter. Written in narrow, loopy writing she had never seen before were the following words:

_Your father left this in my possession before he died._

_It is time it was returned to you._

_Use it well._

_A Very Merry Christmas to you._

There was no signature. Evanna stared at the note. She felt slightly suspicious. Who had sent the cloak? Had it really once belonged to her father?

Before she could say or think anything else, Fred and George Weasley bounded down the stairs. Evanna stuffed the cloak quickly out of sight. She didn't feel like sharing it with anyone else yet.

"Merry Christmas!"

"Hey, look — Evanna's got a Weasley sweater, too!"

Fred and George were wearing blue sweaters, one with a large yellow F on it, the other a G. Evanna also noted that they were wearing each others.

"Vanna's is better than ours, though," said Fred, looking at Evanna's sweater. "She obviously makes more of an effort if you're not family."

"Why aren't you wearing yours, Ron?" George demanded. "Come on, get it on, they're lovely and warm."

"I hate maroon," Ron moaned halfheartedly as he pulled it over his head.

"You haven't got a letter on yours," George observed. "I suppose she thinks you don't forget your name. But we're not stupid — we know we're called Gred and Forge."

Evanna burst out laughing.

"What's all this noise?"

Percy Weasley stuck his head into the common room, looking disapproving. He had clearly gotten halfway through unwrapping his presents as he, too, carried a lumpy sweater over his arm, which Fred seized.

"P for prefect! Get it on, Percy, come on, we're all wearing ours, even Evanna got one."

"I — don't — want — " said Percy thickly, as the twins forced the sweater over his head, knocking his glasses askew.

"And you're not sitting with the prefects today, either," said George. "Christmas is a time for family."

They frog-marched Percy from the room, his arms pinned to his side by his sweater. Evanna laughed again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna was pretty much the definition of winter at the moment. She was wearing a penguin tuque over her dark red hair, which was in a braid over her shoulder as usual. She was wearing her Weasley sweater underneath a heavier coat. She had warm snow boots over her faded jeans. Her outfit was completed by her Gryffindor scarf wrapped around her neck and gloves on her hands.

Of course, she was dressed like this because she was having an epic snowball fight with the Weasley boys. They were playing two against two, Evanna and George verses Fred and Ron. They were doing this because Evanna thought the twins should be split up so that they wouldn't have an unfair advantage.

Evanna had to admit that she and George were doing pretty good. Both Fred and Ron had received at least a few snowballs to the face. Evanna was very good at dodging (having been the target for dodgeball in grade school numerous times), so she had only been hit by _any_ snowballs a few times, though her aim wasn't the best.

She gasped as Ron finally hit her with a snowball, and he got her in the face too. She fell over from the sudden impact and could hear Ron cheering and hi-fiving his older brother. She struggled to sit up, wiping the snow from her face.

Then she screamed, as Fred had somehow snuck behind her and dumped snow down her back. She jumped to her feet, yelling swear words at the boy (a rarity, for sure) and trying to get the snow out of her sweater. Once she had finally removed all the snow from her clothes, she threw as many snowballs as she could, as fast as she could, at Fred. He yelped, diving behind a mound of snow.

"You give up yet?!" George yelled to his brothers.

"Yeah, start waving your white flag, boys!" Evanna added. When George gave her a strange look, she shrugged, saying, "Muggle thing."

"NEVER!" Ron yelled back, and the fight continued.

By the time they had agreed to a stalemate, Evanna's nose and cheeks were rosy from being out in the cold for so long. But she was also giggling non-stop. Seriously. The boys were starting to worry.

"Evanna, calm down," Ron said, "you'll hyperventilate!"

She was actually on the ground now, still laughing her head off.

"Say something random!" George suggested.

"Snape!" Fred exclaimed.

Tears were slipping down Evanna's cheeks now from her laughter.

"Wow, that did _not_ work," Fred said.

"Why is she even laughing?" Ron asked. "George, did you break her?"

"No!" George exclaimed, as if that were a horrible claim.

The Weasleys simply watched as Evanna eventually calmed herself down. "Sorry about that," she said, with a few final giggles as Ron pulled her to her feet, "but random laugh attacks are hard to stop you know."

Nobody could deny that fact.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I know what you're thinking about, Evanna, that mirror. Don't go back tonight."

"Why not?"

"I dunno, I've just got a bad feeling about it — and anyway, you've had too many close shaves already. Filch, Snape, and Mrs. Norris are wandering around. So what if they can't see you? What if they walk into you? What if you knock something over?"

"I'm not that klutzy, Ron!"

Evanna knew that Ron thought the mysterious Mirror of Erised was dangerous, and she thought so too, but that's why it excited her. _Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi . . ._ She needed to figure out what it meant. And why she could see her parents in the mirror.

So that's why, for the third night in a row, Evanna put on her father's invisibility cloak and ventured out to the abandoned classroom where the Mirror of Erised was located. She sat cross-legged in front of it, watching her family in the mirror as she tried to figure out what the riddle could possibly mean. What sort of code would you inscribe on a mirror?

She snapped her fingers. Of course! It was a _mirror_! So, switch the letters around, rearrange the spaces, and . . . Voilà! " _I show you not your face, but your heart's desire_ ," Evanna read aloud, proud to have cracked the code.

"Well done, Evanna."

Evanna whipped around to see none other than Albus Dumbledore, sitting on one of the desks by the wall. Evanna must have walked straight past him without noticing.

"I didn't see you, sir," she admitted, embarrassedly.

"Strange how nearsighted being invisible can make you," said Dumbledore, and Evanna was relieved to see that he was smiling.

"So," said Dumbledore, slipping off the desk to sit on the floor with Evanna, "you, like hundreds before you, have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised."

"Delights?" Evanna squinted at the mirror. "I suppose that's one way of putting it . . ."

"You have discovered what it does," Dumbledore said, matter-of-factly.

Evanna nodded. " _I show you not your face, but your heart's desire_ ," she recited.

"Correct. It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never known your family, see them standing around you. Ronald Weasley, who has always been overshadowed by his brothers, sees himself standing alone, the best of all of them. However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men, and women," he added after seeing the look on Evanna's face, "have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible.

"The Mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow, Evanna, and I ask you not to go looking for it again. If you ever do run across it, you will now be prepared. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Now, why don't you put that admirable cloak back on and get off to bed?"

Evanna decided that the smart thing was to do just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I thought that Evanna would be smart enough to not get obsessed with the mirror itself, but more the code surrounding it. Of course, once she realized what the code said, she realized why she could see her family in the mirror, so she would have no more interest. Well, she would of course be interested, but not overly obsessed, as Harry had been.
> 
> Please review! I can see that you're all following and favourite-ing, which is fantastic, and keep doing that, but please review too? It's not much for me to ask! ~Jayce


	7. Hypothetical Dragons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 7: Hypothetical Dragons
> 
> A/N: Okay, a guest, nick, has asked, "So what are the pairings gonna be? How often will u update? Btw I really liked it alot! Keep up the good work"
> 
> One, thank you, Nick! I appreciate the kind words. Two, I'm going to try and update as often as possible, no specific pattern, mostly because I have no specific schedule in real life XD
> 
> And three, here are the main pairings that I will be including:
> 
> _Evanna and George_
> 
> _Fred and Hermione_
> 
> _Draco and Ginny_
> 
> _Dean and Seamus_
> 
> _Ron and Parvati_
> 
> _Neville and Luna_
> 
> _Bill and Fleur_
> 
> _Remus and Tonks_
> 
> Now, none of these pairings will begin until (let me see) at least after the third book. Mostly because I think that thirteen years old is way too young to date (personally, I think fourteen is too, but whatever, it's a fictional world), partly because the Yule Ball is where some relationships will start, and lastly, because the canon relationships (Remus and Tonks, Bill and Fleur) don't get even hinted at until the fifth book and on.
> 
> So, thank you again for the kind review, and here's the next chapter!

When Quidditch practices started up again, Wood was working them harder than ever. Evanna found herself liking the strain. Anything to keep her mind off that mirror. She may have thought she wouldn't have any obsession to see it again once she had figured out that code, but apparently the desire to see her family again was starting to test her willpower. So Quidditch was her go-to pass time whenever her mind drifted to thoughts of her parents' faces.

She didn't mind practicing in the rain, even if it was so wet and foggy that she could hardly see two feet in front of her, let alone a tiny golden ball. But bad news could dampen anyone's mood. Wood had just gotten very angry with the Weasleys, who kept dive-bombing each other and pretending to fall off their brooms.

"Will you stop messing around!" he yelled. "That's exactly the sort of thing that'll lose us the match!"

Evanna could see that this was their attempt to boost each other's spirits in the dismal weather, so at first she was about to object to Oliver's complaint. Fred and George might be silly during practice, but they wanted to win just as much as anyone else did. But what Oliver said next made her side with him a bit more.

"Snape's refereeing this time, and he'll be looking for any excuse to knock points off Gryffindor!"

George really did fall off his broom at these words.

"Snape's refereeing?" he spluttered through a mouthful of mud. "When's he ever refereed a Quidditch match? He's not going to be fair if we might overtake Slytherin."

The rest of the team landed next to George to complain, too.

"It's not my fault," said Wood. "We've just got to make sure we play a clean game, so Snape hasn't got an excuse to pick on us."

Evanna pulled George to his feet. She stuck out her tongue in disgust at how muddy he was. A mischievous smirk came on his face. He began chasing her around, asking for a hug. Evanna ran to hide behind the three Chasers, but they didn't want to get muddy either. Soon, everyone except Wood was running around playfully.

Wood, knowing that he would never be able to get everyone to calm down, called, "Practice is over!" and went to go get changed.

As soon as these words were said, everyone calmed down and headed towards the locker rooms. Evanna suddenly felt something wet on her cheek. "George, eww!" she cried, wiping the mud from her cheek. Then she stormed into the girls' locker room, completely ignoring the fact that George had just kissed her on the cheek.

"You realize that George Weasley just kissed you, right?" Katie asked, tumbling into the locker room after her.

"Yeah, on the cheek, so?"

Evanna sounded annoyed, but Alicia chimed in. "Sooo he has a thing for you!"

"We're just friends," Evanna retorted. "I might even go as far as best friends, but nothing more! I've kissed him on the cheek too, big whoop! Besides, all he wanted to do was get mud on me!"

"But he could've just used his hand to do that," Angelina pointed out. "I think he just wanted to kiss you!"

Evanna said nothing more, turning her back on the older girls. But she couldn't help wondering if they were right. Did George like her more than a friend?

Meanwhile, just outside of the boys' locker room, Fred put a hand on his twin's shoulder. "Face it, Georgie; you've just been friend-zoned."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Though Evanna was slightly nervous about Snape refereeing the game, it would take a lot more than that to put a damper on her mood. She, Ron, and Hermione had discovered who Nicolas Flamel was; a six hundred and sixty-five-year-old alchemist who was famous for creating the Philosopher's Stone, which they had deduced was what Fluffy was guarding.

"Potter!" Wood pulled Evanna aside. "Don't want to pressure you, Potter, but if we ever need an early capture of the Snitch it's now. Finish the game before Snape can favor Hufflepuff too much."

"The whole school's out there!" said Fred, peering out of the door. "Even — blimey — Dumbledore's come to watch!"

Evanna went over to peer out with him. She nearly laughed at Snape's face. He was in a sour mood. She wondered if it had anything to do with Dumbledore being there. But she could just barely make out the same expression on Quirrell's face. Man, these two weren't going to make this easy for her, were they?

The teams marched out onto the field, Evanna starting to feel more confident. She mounted her broom and took off as soon as Snape blew the whistle. She circled the pitch quickly, remembering Oliver saying how the game needed to end sooner than later.

Evanna let out a laugh. Of course, George's first Bludger was aimed at Snape. The look on Snape's face, as he dived out of the way, was worth the penalty.

And she saw it.

The Snitch was hovering right by Snape's head. "You want a quick game, you got it, Oliver," she muttered, letting out a single grunt of laughter before streaking towards the ground.

As fast as she possibly could, she flew past Snape, arm outstretched. Just a few more inches now . . . She grabbed the Snitch, flying around the pitch with it in her palm. Cheers rippled through the crowd.

When she landed, she slammed into Fred, who had just landed as well. He cracked a grin, giving her a hi-five. "You were great, Vanna."

"Thanks, Fred," Evanna said, grinning back at him.

Then Ron and Hermione stumbled out of the crowds which had circled her. Hermione gave her a tight hug, screaming, "You did it!"

"That must've been the fastest game of Quidditch played, ever!" Ron exclaimed. Evanna was about to hug him too, until she noticed his very bloody nose. At her raised eyebrow, he explained that Malfoy had been insulting him and Neville (but when was Malfoy not insulting people really?) and Evanna chuckled.

"You're an idiot," she said, punching him lightly in the arm, then pulling him into a hug too.

"Like you're not," he retorted, chuckling.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was stifling hot inside Hagrid's hut. Even though it was such a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the grate, which Evanna stared at, as if willing it to die down.

"So — yeh wanted to ask me somethin'?"

"Yes," said Evanna, snapping from her trance. "We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Philosopher's Stone, apart from Fluffy."

Hagrid frowned at her, and began to lecture her about how he didn't know, and how, even if he did, he wouldn't tell them, and how the Stone was there for a good reason. Evanna wasn't in a very chipper mood today, and Hagrid wasn't helping.

She had overheard her two prime suspects (Snape and Quirrell) arguing. Unfortunately, they had been so cryptic that she still had no idea who was really out for the Philosopher's Stone. By the way they talked, they could've been working together for all she knew!

She realized she had zoned out a bit, and snapped back to earth just in time to hear Hermione trying to squeeze the answers they needed out of the giant man with flattery. "We only wondered who had done the guarding, really," Hermione was saying in an affectionate voice. "We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you."

Hagrid's chest swelled at these last words. Ron beamed at Hermione as Evanna nudged her, whispering, "Ten points to Gryffindor."

"Well, I don' s'pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that . . . let's see . . . he borrowed Fluffy from me . . . then some o' the teachers did enchantments . . . Professor Sprout — Professor Flitwick — Professor McGonagall — " he ticked them off on his fingers, "Professor Quirrell — an' Dumbledore himself did somethin', o' course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape."

"Snape?" Ron asked, just as Evanna asked, "Quirrell?"

"Yeah — yer not still on abou' that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he's not about ter steal it."

Evanna knew Ron and Hermione were thinking that if Snape had been in on protecting the Stone, it must have been easy to find out how the other teachers had guarded it. Though, Evanna knew that the same could be said about Quirrell. It made her so furious that both teachers were so suspicious!

"You're the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy. aren't you, Hagrid?" said Hermione anxiously. "And you wouldn't tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?"

"Not a soul knows except me an' Dumbledore," said Hagrid proudly.

"Well, that's something," Ron muttered to the others. "Hagrid, can we have a window open? I'm boiling."

"Can't, Ron, sorry," said Hagrid. Evanna noticed him glance at the fire, so she looked at it, too. The colour drained from her face.

"Hagrid — what's that?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hagrid was partaking in illicit activity.

"Wonder what it's like to have a peaceful life," Ron sighed, one evening as they struggled with all their extra homework.

"Far too boring for my taste," Evanna muttered, as she sat in an armchair, studying her Transfiguration textbook, not processing a word she was reading. She was far too busy worrying about what would happen, should someone find out that Hagrid had a dragon.

"Do you think he realizes that his house is made of _wood_?" Hermione asked, worriedly.

"Nope, but you know, that's a _really_ bad thing. Fire-breathing dragon, wooden hut . . ." Evanna weighed the options on her hands. "Not a good combination."

"What's this about a dragon?" Fred and George had just entered the common room.

"Hypothetical," Evanna said, shrugging. Then she groaned, letting her textbook fall on her lap. "I just cannot concentrate today!"

George fished through his pockets, pulling out a pair of rectangular glasses. He tossed them to Evanna. She caught them without a problem (being a Seeker and all).

"What's this?" she asked.

"Those are nifty little things called glasses — " George began, grinning, but Evanna interrupted him with a cold glare.

"No, you git, I mean, why are you giving me glasses?"

"Georgie wears them to help him study — don't give us that look! We pass our classes, don't we?" Fred cried, looking aghast that she would even suggest that.

"It really works," George added, watching her put the glasses on the tip of her nose, returning to her book. He grinned. "You look smart."

"Shut up." Evanna was kind of surprised that George's idea was actually working.

"Now, why were you three having a hypothetical conversation about a dragon in a wooden hut?" Fred asked, bouncing back to the trio's earlier topic.

"None of your business, Frederick," Hermione said.

"What was the breed of this hypothetical dragon?" Fred persisted.

"Nose out!" Ron hissed.

Fred raised his hands in surrender, but the mischievous grin didn't fade from his face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna was furious at Hagrid. First, he takes in a Norwegian Ridgeback. Then, he lets it get away with biting Ron, whose hand was now twice it's size and he was confined to bed rest. Now, Evanna and Hermione had to help him get rid of it by going up to the tallest astronomy tower to meet Charlie Weasley's friends (Ron's second oldest brother, who was in Romania working with dragons), and letting them take the dragon off their hands. Of course, all of this was illegal.

"Bye-bye, Norbert!" Hagrid sobbed, as Evanna and Hermione covered the crate containing the Ridgeback (named Norbert, of course) with the invisibility cloak and stepped underneath it themselves. "Mommy will never forget you!"

Evanna rolled her eyes, and she and Hermione set off through the castle, headed for the tallest astronomy tower. Of course, going up thousands of stairs wasn't the easiest task in itself without a heavy crate containing a baby dragon. The two girls used all of the shortcuts they could recall, but it still took a very long time to reach the corridor beneath the tallest tower. And Evanna kept insisting she could hear footsteps behind them, and was stubbornly convinced that someone was following them, even though every time they turned to check there was no one in sight.

Suddenly, they could see the dark outlines of two people grappling with each other ten feet away. They shrank into the shadows to watch this fight. Evanna gave Hermione a sort of 'I-told-you-so' look as the figures came into view.

Professor McGonagall, in a tartan bathrobe and a hair net, had Malfoy by the ear. "Detention!" she shouted. "And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night, how dare you — "

"You don't understand, Professor. Evanna Potter's coming — she's got a dragon!"

"What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies! Come on — I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!"

Evanna nearly giggled at that, but caught herself just in time. Oh, how wonderful! Not only were they not caught, but Malfoy had made a fool himself! Serves him right for sticking his nose where it didn't belong.

Finally, they had reached the top of the tower. Evanna ripped the cloak off of them, and the pair allowed the heavy crate to drop from their tired fingers. Shaking her hands, in hopes to return the blood flow to her fingers, Evanna sat down on top of the crate, wearing a smug smile at the thought of Malfoy in detention.

About ten minutes later, four broomsticks came swooping down out of the darkness. Charlie's friends were a cheery lot. They showed Evanna and Hermione the harness they'd rigged up, so they could suspend Norbert between them. They all helped buckle Norbert safely into it.

"Thank you for doing this, it means a lot," Hermione said.

"Don't mention it," said one.

"No, really. I know this is illegal and everything — " Evanna began graciously, but was cut off by another of Charlie's mates.

"Not the strangest thing Charlie's asked us to do."

They shared a private laugh, and Evanna couldn't help but wonder what else the second oldest Weasley boy had asked them to do. But at last, they waved goodbye, watching the four brooms with the jiggling crate fly off into the darkness. Hermione had to pull Evanna to get going, because she swore she saw two heads by the door leading back downstairs.

Walking out into the corridor at the bottom of the spiral staircase, Evanna stopped dead in her tracks, her face as white as snow. She looked urgently at Hermione. "We have to go back up!" she whispered, as loudly as she dared.

"Why?" Hermione asked, but it was too late.

Filch came out of the shadows, looking the girls up and down with a sort of deranged happiness. "Well, well, well," he whispered, "we are in trouble."

They'd left the invisibility cloak on top of the tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Ah yes, _this_ chapter. I wasn't too pleased with it at first — too much of me just copying and pasting the dialogue — so I played around with it a bunch. There's still a ton of dialogue, but I added some of Evanna's thoughts and et cetera.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	8. Psychotic Unicorn Slayer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 8: Psychotic Unicorn Slayer
> 
> A/N: I'm super duper excited because I've finished the first book! No, not this chapter. I've finished the book, and I'm still editing the last few chapters. But here's a new chapter! It was originally titled, "Figuring it out" but I thought this title was better XD Psychotic Unicorn Slayer!

"Really, Vanna, I'm sure it'll be fine," Fred insisted the next morning, as he and George sat with Evanna in the common room. They had vouched to skip breakfast in order to cheer her up (she had refused to go, knowing that she would just receive angry glares).

Evanna, head resting in her palms with her elbows on her knees, just let out a moan. "Face the facts! I've just earned not only myself, but a Slytherin and two fellow Gryffindors, detention!"

"Who?" George asked. Evanna ignored the fact he sounded like he already knew.

"Draco Malfoy (no regrets there), Neville Longbottom, and Hermione Granger." Though it hadn't really been her fault that Neville had left bed to try and warn them about Malfoy.

" _Hermione Granger_? What did you do, exactly, to rope Know-it-all Granger, notorious rule follower, into it?"

Evanna scoffed (mostly to cover the fact that she really didn't want to tell them). "Nothing that's up to your standards."

Fred arched an eyebrow, smirking. "Illegal dragon transports aren't up to our standards?"

Evanna's head snapped towards him. "How do you know about that?" she demanded, raising her wand. Okay, so that might not have been necessary, but she had been caught by surprise.

Fred held his hands up in surrender. "No need to get so defensive!"

"After you three got so snippy when we were merely _inquiring_ about your so-called 'hypothetical' dragon," George began, using air quotes for emphasis, "we got suspicious. We did our research — to be more specific, we followed you around — and found out that our humble gamekeeper had a dragon, which is, of course, illegal, and not to mention dangerous."

"As you probably know, danger excites us," Fred continued. "So we kept tabs on you and your little dragon friend. Upon finding out that you and Granger were going on a midnight stroll with a baby Norwegian Ridgeback, which Ron found out the hard way has a poisonous bite, we wanted to assist you! But we weren't about to give away that we had discovered your secret, so we followed you discreetly."

"I knew there was someone following us!" Evanna exclaimed. "And Hermione just brushed it off!" Then she gave them a strange look. "But how did you follow us? We were invisible!"

"Ask us no questions — "

"And we'll tell you no lies."

Evanna huffed, crossing her arms and sitting back. She waved her hand, saying, "Well, continue."

"Alright, alright! Where were we?"

"Midnight wanderings, Freddie."

"Ah, right. Thanks, Georgie. Anyways, we followed you and Granger up the tallest astronomy tower, and watched you give Norbert to Charlie's mates. But you idiots — " at Evanna's icy glare, he amended, " — ah, I mean, beautiful, smart, talented, young ladies — "

"Nice save, Gred."

" _Thank you, Forge_ ," Fred replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He coughed, "Ahem, so we noticed that you two had forgotten something. I can't believe you didn't tell us you had an invisibility cloak!" He held up Evanna's invisibility cloak, which she grabbed, thanking him profusely. Fred nearly burst out laughing at the jealousy on his twin's face. If George thought his crush wasn't obvious, he was sadly mistaken.

" _Then_ ," George said, grabbing Evanna's attention, "we used it to witness McGonagall catching you, Hermione, and, surprisingly, Neville, who had been trying to warn you or something. Too late for that, I suppose. A hundred and fifty Gryffindor points down the drain."

Evanna was surprised that both twins were smiling. "You're not mad?"

"Mad? Of course not! We're _proud_."

"Yeah, those points were worth it, weren't they? You helped Hagrid, got away with illicit activity, _and_ didn't get expelled!"

"Besides, we win the next Quidditch game, people get a few points in class, and we'll regain the lead in no time!"

Evanna was glad that the twins were so optimistic, because she definitely was _not_.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Evanna and Hermione followed Hagrid through the Forbidden Forest, Evanna had to worry about the sanity of the Hogwarts staff. Sending a handful of kids into a monster-filled forest (which was _forbidden_ to them normally) in the _middle of the night_ , then _splitting them up_ to search for a _psychotic unicorn slayer_ (which, when she thought about it, sounded like a great band). On the bright side, if she survived this, she could brag to the Weasley twins about having the best detention ever.

She kept spotting unicorn blood, and instinctively shying away from the silvery liquid. Everything was putting her on edge right now, ever since they heard that slithering sound (like the bottom of a cloak trailing over the forest floor; she shivered just thinking about it) and had seen those centaurs. The centaurs weren't so bad — a bit vague at times, talking about planets being bright or whatever — but she didn't like how they had looked at her. Not to mention she kept getting the feeling of being watched. She doubted it was the Weasley twins this time.

Suddenly, Hermione's voice cried out, "Hagrid! Look! Red sparks, the others are in trouble!"

"You two wait here!" Hagrid shouted. "Stay on the path, I'll come back for yeh!"

He darted away, leaving Evanna more nervous than before. If anything came to attack them . . .

"You don't think they've been hurt, do you?" whispered Hermione.

"I don't care if Malfoy has, but if something's got Neville . . . it's our fault he's here in the first place," Evanna whispered back. It didn't feel safe to talk any louder than that.

At last, a great crunching noise announced Hagrid's return. Malfoy, Neville, and Fang were with him. Hagrid was fuming. Malfoy, it seemed, had sneaked up behind Neville and grabbed him as a joke. Neville had panicked and sent up the sparks.

"We'll be lucky ter catch anythin' now, with the racket you two were makin'. Right, we're changin' groups — Neville, you stay with me an' Hermione; Evanna, you go with Fang an' this idiot. I'm sorry," Hagrid added in a whisper to Evanna, "but he'll have a harder time frightenin' you, an' we've gotta get this done."

"Gee, thanks," Evanna muttered, sarcastically. After she and Malfoy had gone a little ways, she gave him a punch in the shoulder. "You're an idiot," she said plainly, after Malfoy had given her a 'what-the-heck?!' look.

Malfoy rubbed his shoulder where she had hit him, and they continued to trek through the forest. The silvery pools of blood became larger and larger, until they stopped dead in their tracks.

A bright white unicorn lay on the ground, covered in its own blood, undoubtedly dead. It was so beautiful, yet so sad. It was all bent at odd angles from when it fell, and its mane stood out pearly-white on the dirt. Evanna was so tempted to go nearer, to examine the body . . .

Malfoy grabbed her shoulder to hold her back, pressing a finger to his lips. And she heard it too. The same sound as earlier; the slithering of a cloak on the forest floor. The two stood stock-still, listening. Even Fang seemed to sense the foreboding and kept still.

Then, out of the shadows, a hooded figure came crawling across the ground like some stalking beast. Evanna, Malfoy, and Fang stood transfixed. The cloaked figure reached the unicorn, lowered its head over the wound in the animal's side, and began to drink its blood.

"AAAAAAAAAARGH!"

Malfoy let out a terrible scream and bolted, Fang right at his heels. The hooded figure raised its head and looked right at Evanna — unicorn blood was dribbling down its front. It got to its feet and came swiftly towards her, ignoring her raised wand.

Then a pain like she'd never felt before pierced her head; it was as though her scar were on fire. She fell to the ground, feeling lightheaded. The last thing she heard before she fainted was hooves behind her, galloping, and something jumping clean over her, charging at the figure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron had fallen asleep in the dark common room, waiting for his best mates to return. He was having a great dream where he was Keeper for the Chudley Cannons when Evanna roughly shook him awake. He gave her a sleepy glare, angry at her for interrupting his goal-saving. In a matter of seconds though, he was wide-eyed as Evanna began to tell him and Hermione what had happened in the forest.

She had seen You-Know-Who and been saved by a centaur named Firenze. The centaur had hinted that it was _You-Know-Who_ who wanted the Philosopher's Stone, and that Snape (or Quirrell, as Evanna insisted) was trying to get it for him.

Ron watched as Evanna paced up and down in front of the fire. He noticed that she was still shaking badly.

"Snape and slash or Quirrell wants the stone for Voldemort . . . and Voldemort's waiting in the forest . . . and all this time we thought Snape and slash or Quirrell just wanted to get rich . . ."

"Stop saying the name!" said Ron in a terrified whisper.

Evanna wasn't listening.

"Firenze saved me, but he shouldn't have done so . . . Bane was furious . . . he was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going to happen . . . They must show that Voldemort's coming back . . . Bane thinks Firenze should have let Voldemort kill me . . . I suppose that's written in the stars as well."

"Will you stop saying the name!" Ron hissed.

"So all I've got to wait for now is Snape and slash or Quirrell to steal the Stone," Evanna concluded, looking a bit sick, "then Voldemort will be able to come and finish me off . . . Well, I suppose Bane'll be happy."

Hermione looked very frightened, but she had a word of comfort. "Evanna, everyone says Dumbledore's the only one You-Know-Who was ever afraid of With Dumbledore around, You-Know-Who won't touch you. Anyway, who says the centaurs are right? It sounds like fortune-telling to me, and Professor McGonagall says that's a very imprecise branch of magic."

Somehow, this didn't make Evanna feel any better.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Exams were finally over, so the trio wandered down to the lake and flopped under a tree. The Weasley twins and Lee Jordan were tickling the tentacles of a giant squid, which was basking in the warm shallows. George (or was that Fred? Evanna couldn't tell from far away) waved at them. Evanna wanted to join them, but her scar was throbbing so heavily that all she felt like doing was lazing around in annoyance.

"No more studying," Ron sighed happily, stretching out on the grass. "You could look more cheerful, Evanna, we've got a week before we find out how badly we've done, there's no need to worry yet."

Evanna was rubbing her forehead. "My scar keeps hurting — it's happened before, but never as often as this."

"Go to Madam Pomfrey," Hermione suggested, with worry in her voice. Perhaps the curse which had given her that scar was a slow acting one, and she was going to die soon! Hermione immediately dismissed this thought as paranoia, but that didn't stop her from worrying.

"I'm not ill," Evanna huffed bitterly. "I think," she said finally, after a long pause, "it's a warning. It means danger's coming."

"Evanna, relax, Hermione's right, the Stone's safe as long as Dumbledore's around. Anyway, we've never had any proof Snape ("Or Quirrell!" Evanna interjected angrily, but Ron seemed to ignore her) found out how to get past Fluffy. He nearly had his leg ripped off once, he's not going to try it again in a hurry. And Neville will play Quidditch for England before Hagrid lets Dumbledore down."

Evanna nodded, but couldn't shake off the feeling that she was overlooking something. But Ron was right; Hagrid wouldn't dare let Dumbledore down. She felt her lips twist into a soft smile as she remembered when Hagrid had given her cousin a pig's tail for insulting Dumbledore . . . She suddenly frowned, her mind jumping from pig's tails to dragon's tails. Where had Hagrid said he'd gotten Norbert again?

Evanna suddenly jumped to her feet. "I've just thought of something. We've got to go and see Hagrid, _now_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yes! In the next chapter they go down the trapdoor after Quirrell! I'm very excited!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	9. Past the Stone's Defenses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 9: Past the Stone's Defenses
> 
> A/N: Only two more chapters (after this one) in book 1! Do you want me to post them both today? If I don't get any responses, I'm going to anyways!

Evanna's mind was reeling. They had learned that, not only did Snape and slash or Quirrell know how to get past Fluffy, but they also were going to try to steal the Stone tonight, considering that Dumbledore was conveniently absent. Of course, being the idiot she was, she was going to try to stop them (with the help of Ron and Hermione, who had volunteered of their own free will). They just had to wait for the common room to be empty.

Finally, it was just them and the Weasley twins. Evanna was just about to ask them politely to leave, when they approached her.

"Vanna, we want to help you," Fred said, determinedly. When she opened her mouth to decline, Fred rephrased it. "We _demand_ to help you!"

"We don't need all the gory details; we know enough already," George added with a wink. This made Evanna wonder just how much time these two had spent following her.

Evanna sighed. "You two are _impossible_! But," she continued, "I do have a job for you. My two prime suspects are Snape and Quirrell. You can each keep watch over one of their offices. Fred, you can watch Snape's, and George can watch Quirrell's."

The twins nodded, but before they embarked, Evanna kissed them both on the cheek. "Thanks for this," she mumbled, blushing, "and good luck."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Evanna dropped down into the inky blackness, she braced herself for impact — any impact. But instead of being met with tough ground, she landed on something surprisingly soft. Definitely not what one would expect after dropping for miles.

Evanna, Ron, and Hermione had gone into the forbidden third-floor corridor to find that someone had already been there; a harp to lull Fluffy to sleep had been abandoned by the giant dog's feet. Luckily, Hagrid had given Evanna that flute for Christmas, which the trio used to soothe the three-headed dog back into its slumber. Then Evanna, being the brave and stupid one, had been the first to plummet down the seemingly endless hole under the trapdoor that Fluffy had been guarding.

Now, she called up to her friends, letting them know that it was safe to drop down. Soon enough, she heard two other muffled thumps. She tried to go over to them, so the trio could set off to find Snape and slash or Quirrell, but she found she couldn't. Tugging on her leg, she realized that they were sitting on a plant, which had wrapped its tendrils around her, holding her in place. Evanna's eyes went comically wide, and she looked over at her two best friends, to find that only Ron had received the same fate she had; Hermione had realized what was happening in time to escape.

"Stop struggling!" Hermione commanded. "This is Devil's Snare!"

"Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called, that's a great help," snarled Ron, leaning back, trying to stop the plant from curling around his neck.

"Shut up, I'm trying to remember how to kill it!" Hermione snapped, looking like she was deep in thought. "Devil's Snare, Devil's Snare . . . what did Professor Sprout say? — it likes the dark and the damp."

"So light a fire!" Evanna choked, as the plant's grip tightened around her midsection.

"Yes — of course — but there's no wood!" Hermione cried, wringing her hands.

"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?" Ron bellowed. "ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"

"Oh, right!" said Hermione, and she whipped out her wand, waved it, muttered something, and sent a jet of the same bluebell flames she had used on Snape at the plant. In a matter of seconds, the two redheads felt it loosening its grip as it cringed away from the light and warmth. Wriggling and flailing, it unraveled itself from their bodies, and they were able to pull free.

"Lucky you pay attention in Herbology, Hermione," said Evanna as she joined Hermione by the wall, and immediately leaning against it, hand over her heart, panting.

"Yeah," said Ron, "and lucky Evanna doesn't lose her head in a crisis — 'there's no wood,' _honestly_."

Evanna smirked, looking at Ron, whose snarky remark had reminded her of how their bookish friend could sometimes be. "And that was totally a page from Hermione's book, Ron. Be careful."

Ron's ears went red with embarrassment, before the three friends set off down the only passage they could find. It was a stone passageway, which sloped downwards, and all they could hear apart from their footsteps was the gentle drip of water trickling down the walls. It made Evanna uneasy, thinking about her trip to Gringotts in the summer, and how Hagrid had said that there were rumors of dragons guarding some of the more high-security vaults. If they met a dragon, they might as well get her grave ready right now. Norbert had been bad enough, and he had only been a few weeks old . . .

When they reached the end of the passageway, they were stunned by a brightly lit chamber, maybe as big as the Great Hall, with hundreds of sparkly birds, fluttering around the room absentmindedly. Evanna blinked, her eyes adjusting to the newfound lights. She could see a door at the other side, and the room didn't appear to have any challenges . . .

"Do you suppose that those birds will attack us when we try to cross?" Ron suggested, looking at his friends incredulously. "They don't look vicious . . ."

Evanna smirked. "Only one way to find out. Last one there is a troll bogey!"

The trio raced, half having fun and half scared that the birds might attack, across the room. Nothing happened. The birds didn't attack, or even seem to notice the intruders.

"Huh," Evanna muttered, still with her eyes on the birds as she absentmindedly tried the door. It was locked. Maybe their task was to unlock the door? "Alohomora," Evanna attempted, but the charm did no good.

She tried to think up another way to unlock the door, but it was hard to concentrate with the birds glittering all the time — wait, since when did birds _glitter_? Maybe only magical birds could, but Evanna highly doubted it. Squinting up at what she had previously assumed were birds, she saw that they were actually winged keys. Another thing she noticed was a collection of brooms off to the side of the chamber.

A smile spread across her face and, without informing Ron or Hermione of her intentions, she grabbed a broom and flew off, searching for a big, old-fashioned key to fit the heavy, wooden door. The keys began to dive and dart around so quickly that it seemed impossible to catch any; but Evanna wasn't the youngest Seeker in a century for nothing.

She was quick, and had a knack for spotting things that others may miss. So it was no surprised to either of her friends that she had touched back on the floor in a matter of minutes. She held out a key with bright blue wings — one of which was crumpled, as if it had been handled recently. Beaming with pride, Evanna slid the key into the lock.

The door opened easily.

Evanna let the key fly away again, and she and her friends went through the door, into the next room, which was flooded with light as soon as they had passed over the threshold. They were standing on the edge of a huge chessboard, behind the black chessmen, which were all taller than they were and carved from what looked like black stone. Facing them, way across the chamber, were the white pieces.

"Now what do we do?" Hermione whispered.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" said Ron. "We've got to play our way across the room."

Evanna had been dreading that sentence. Ron had taught them to play wizard's chess, and both she and Hermione were rubbish at it. Fortunately, Ron was a brilliant chess player.

"Well, Ron," Evanna said, putting a hand on her best mate's shoulder, "we'll follow your lead."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Yes . . ." said Ron softly, "It's the only way . . . I've got to be taken."

"NO!" Evanna and Hermione shouted. Their giant chess game was nearly over and, after contemplating all the other options, Ron had realized that a sacrifice had to be made.

"That's chess!" snapped Ron. "You've got to make some sacrifices! I take one step forward and she'll take me — that leaves you free to checkmate the king, Evanna!"

"But — "

"Do you want to stop Snape or not?"

"Ron — "

"Quirrell then, whatever! Look, if you don't hurry up, he'll already have the Stone!"

There was no alternative, Evanna realized that, but she didn't have to like it.

"Here I go!" Ron called, his face pale but determined. He stepped forward, and the white queen pounced. She struck Ron hard across the head with her stone arm, and he crashed to the floor — Hermione screamed but stayed on her square — the white queen dragged Ron to one side. He looked as if he'd been knocked out.

Shaking, Evanna moved three spaces to the left.

The white king took off his crown and threw it at Evanna's feet. They had won. The chessmen parted and bowed, leaving the door ahead clear. With one last desperate look back at Ron, Evanna and Hermione charged through the door and up the next passageway.

"He'll be fine," said Evanna, as Hermione opened her mouth to ask. "What do you reckon's next?"

"We've had Sprout's, that was the Devil's Snare; Flitwick must've put charms on the keys; McGonagall transfigured the chessmen to make them alive; that leaves Quirrell's spell, and Snape's."

Evanna scowled. "All right then, let's just go."

The next door she opened released a putrid stench. Coughing, the two girls crossed the room, past an unconscious troll whose head was bleeding. It was far bigger than the one they had fought on Halloween.

"I'm glad we didn't have to fight that one," Hermione whispered, covering her nose.

"We could've done it though," Evanna grinned, nudging her friend playfully. Then she stopped dead in her tracks. "Hermione, is this Quirrell's protection?"

"Well, it's not potions, so I'm assuming so," Hermione said, watching as her friend went white. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Quirrell's protection is a _troll_ , Hermione. _A troll_!"

"So?"

"Quirrell must've let the troll in on Halloween!"

"Evanna, this doesn't even slightly relate to that . . ."

Hermione sounded exasperated, so Evanna didn't press any further, as much as she wanted to yell, "You idiot! It _all_ relates!"

Hermione pushed open the next door, expecting something very dangerous on the other side. But there was nothing in this room, except a table with seven differently shaped bottles standing on it in a line. "Maybe Snape already completed this challenge too?"

But she spoke too soon, for as soon as they stepped over the threshold, and immediately a fire sprang up behind them in the doorway. It wasn't ordinary fire either; it was purple. At the same instant, black flames shot up in the doorway leading onward.

"Look!" Hermione seized a roll of paper lying next to the bottles. Evanna looked over her shoulder to read it:

_Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,_

_Two of us will help you, which ever you would find,_

_One among us seven will let you move ahead,_

_Another will transport the drinker back instead,_

_Two among our number hold only nettle wine,_

_Three of us are killers, waiting bidden in line._

_Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,_

_To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:_

_First, however slyly the poison tries to hide_

_You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;_

_Second, different are those who stand at either end,_

_But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;_

_Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,_

_Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;_

_Fourth, the second left and the second on the right_

_Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight._

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. "Brilliant," she said, smiling. "This isn't magic — it's logic — a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven't got an ounce of logic, they'd be stuck in here forever."

"I'm great at codes and riddles, but when it's a threat of life or death . . . I'll trust you with this one, Mione," Evanna said, giving her best mate an encouraging smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: YES YES YES in the next chapter, we discover whether it's Quirrell or Snape trying to get the Stone! (And we all know the answer already, and so does Evanna ;)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	10. Quirrelmort

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 10: Quirrelmort
> 
> A/N: I was going to call this "Weasley Twins Minus One" but I thought that was too sad, and would freak you all out (nobody except Quirrell dies in this chapter!) The next chapter will be up momentarily.

Evanna stepped through the purple flames. Hermione was brilliant. She had figured out that riddle in no time flat. Now, with Hermione safely back through the black flames, Evanna had readied herself to see whoever was trying to steal the Stone.

Quirrell stood in front of the Mirror of Erised, staring at it intently. He might not have noticed Evanna if she hadn't yelled, "I knew it! I knew it was going to be either you or Snape, but nobody believed that there was even an ounce of possibility that it was you, but it was!"

Quirrell spun around to face her, snapping his fingers. At first, Evanna thought he was starting to dance, until ropes sprang out of thin air and wrapped tightly around Evanna. She considered hopping towards Quirrell, but knew if she tried, she would fall flat on her face, and that wouldn't be helpful at all.

"Yes, Severus does seem the type, doesn't he? So useful to have him swooping around like an overgrown bat. Next to him, who would suspect p-p-poor, st-stuttering P-Professor Quirrell?"

"Me! I did! Me, me, me! Oh, I could dance!" Evanna shrieked, almost forgetting why she was down here and facing Quirrell in the first place. Then, after calming down, she realized, "That means that you were the one jinxing my broom, while Snape was anti-jinxing it! And Snape wasn't threatening you to get the Stone or anything, but to protect it from you! And I was right about you letting the troll in on Halloween, wasn't I?"

Quirrell looked quite irked at Evanna, and said, "Yes, yes, on all counts. Now be a good girl and sit quietly while I examine this mirror."

Evanna gave a large smile. Annoying was something that she could highly excel at. This would be fun. "Oh no, I couldn't possibly be right on all counts. Let me tell you more of my theories. I think that, though Snape seems to hate me, his hatred doesn't extend as far as death, unlike yours. I also think that when I heard you being threatening in that classroom a few days ago, it was Voldemort who was threatening you, not Snape."

"Yes, correct, now just — "

"My only question is, how did he get into the school without being noticed?"

"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "I met him when I traveled around the world. A foolish young man I was then, full of ridiculous ideas about good and evil. Lord Voldemort showed me how wrong I was. There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it . . . Since then, I have served him faithfully, although I have let him down many times. He has had to be very hard on me." Quirrell shivered suddenly. "He does not forgive mistakes easily. When I failed to steal the stone from Gringotts, he was most displeased. He punished me . . . decided he would have to keep a closer watch on me . . ."

"So, he's with you now? I don't see him. I think you're a liar. I think that you're not really devoted to old Voldy and — "

Quirrell sighed with irritation and waved his wand. Evanna found that she couldn't speak. This didn't bother her too much. You didn't have to talk to be annoying.

Jumping towards Quirrell, she heard him muttering things to himself. _Lunatic_ , she thought, rolling her eyes, before falling over, the ropes around her tightening slightly. She began to roll around on the floor, and if she had been able to talk, she would've been giggling. She continued rolling and rolling, trying to get closer to the fake professor, but nearly died in shock when something answered one of Quirrell's mutterings.

"Use the girl . . . Use the girl . . ."

Quirrell clapped his hands, and the ropes disappeared. Evanna sat up, stretching, looking as if she had just woken up. Flipping her braid over her shoulder, she looked over at Quirrell.

"Come here, Potter. Look in the mirror and tell me what you see."

Evanna found no point in running, so she did as she was told. Standing in front of the mirror, she saw what she expected; herself, pale and bloody (how did that happen?). But then, her reflection smiled at her, held up a blood-red stone, winked, and put the stone in her pocket. Evanna felt something heavy suddenly appear in her pocket as this happened, but she put on her poker face. Now that she had the Philosopher's Stone, the reflection changed to her surrounded by her family again.

"What do you see?" Quirrell demanded.

Evanna decided to annoy him a bit more. She moved her lips without speaking, giving Quirrell the pretense that she was still under his silencing spell. He waved his wand, but nothing happened, she just kept moving her lips. Again and again he waved his wand. But Evanna kept going, until she finally stopped pretending to talk and raised an eyebrow at him, hands on her hips, as if to say, "Come on, lift the spell already!" though she knew full well that he already had.

Aggravated, Quirrell grabbed her braid, pulling as hard as he could. She let out a yelp of pain, and Quirrell glared at her.

"Uh, finally lifted the spell! Nice job, Professor!" Evanna said, with a nervous grin.

"What. Did. You. See?" Quirrell asked, slowly and fiercely.

"I saw my parents," Evanna said, knowing that this wasn't a real lie, just a lie by omission.

"She lies . . . She lies . . ." The same high, cold voice as before spoke. It definitely wasn't Evanna, and Quirrell's lips weren't moving. Unless he was the world's greatest ventriloquist, there was someone else within the room.

Quirrell yanked harder still on her hair, actually managing to lift her off her feet. "I won't ask again."

"Ah, maybe not, but you won't kill me either, because the mysterious third party who resides in this room, and speaks only in echos, knows that I hold the key to getting the Philosopher's Stone," Evanna smirked, folding her arms across her chest, ignoring the pain of her hair being tugged off her scalp. "You can hurt me all you want, but what's to say I'll tell you what I saw?"

Mysterious third party spoke again. "Let me speak to her . . . face-to-face . . ."

Quirrell let go of Evanna, who took a few stumbling steps backwards. "Master, you are not strong enough!"

"I have strength enough . . . for this . . ."

Evanna watched in amusement as Quirrell unraveled his turban. But she wasn't amused for long. For as Quirrell turned, his back facing Evanna, she saw, where the back of his head should have been, there was a face. It was a chalk white face, contrasting beautifully with Quirrell's light skin tone, with glaring red eyes and slits for nostrils, like a snake.

So this was Voldemort.

"Hey Voldy," Evanna said, as coolly as she could muster through her sheer terror, "may I recommend some great skin cream?"

"See what I have become?" the face (which Evanna assumed was Voldemort, considering how Quirrell had talked about him earlier) said. "Mere shadow and vapor . . . I have form only when I can share another's body . . . but there have always been those willing to let me into their hearts and minds . . . Unicorn blood has strengthened me, these past weeks . . . you saw faithful Quirrell drinking it for me in the forest . . . and once I have the Elixir of Life, I will be able to create a body of my own . . . Now . . . why don't you give me that Stone in your pocket?"

"Come and make me, why don't you?!" Evanna yelled, trying to sound braver than she felt.

"Don't be a fool," snarled Voldemort. "Better save your own life and join me . . . or you'll meet the same end as your parents . . . I killed your father first; and he put up a courageous fight . . . but your mother needn't have died . . . she was trying to protect you . . . Now give me the Stone, unless you want her to have died in vain."

"You'll kill me whether I give it to you or not," Evanna retorted. "I've made you lose too much for you to care whether I join you or not!"

She took off in a run towards the door of purple flames. She could feel Quirrell's hand close around her wrist. An awful pain seared across her scar, and she struggled against the man with two faces. To her utter surprise, he let go rather quickly. Looking back at him, she understood why.

His hand was blistering away before his eyes. Evanna had no idea what happened, but as Quirrell pinned her to the ground, hands around her neck, his hands began to blister again. He wrenched them away from her neck, staring at the skin, now red and raw. Evanna wasn't sure how she was doing it, but her flesh was making Quirrell's burn away.

Instinctively, she grabbed his face. His howls of pain were terrible. He stumbled backwards, his face blistering, and Evanna knew that to defeat him, she would have to keep contact with his skin. Grabbing his arm, she could faintly hear Voldemort screaming orders at Quirrell over Quirrell's shrieks of agony. Evanna's forehead was filling pain too, so she delivered a swift kick to Quirrell's crotch, before she could faint, as sometimes happened when her scar was tormenting her like a fire blazing throughout her skull. As she had predicted, her body went limp, and the last thing she saw before the blackness was Quirrell, burning away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna woke with a start, to see her friends surrounding her.

"Evanna!" Hermione wrapped her arms so tightly around Evanna's neck that she almost choked her. "I didn't think you'd wake up so soon; they've just brought you here, you see, and — "

Evanna cut her off. "Where's George?!"

Ron, Hermione, and Fred were crowded around her, but the other Weasley twin was nowhere in sight.

Fred frowned. "I guess he's still outside Quirrell's office . . . I assumed he would already be here, but I guess the news didn't reach him — Vanna! Calm down!"

Evanna had slid out of bed, standing shakily. Fred and Ron tried to push her back into the hospital bed, but Evanna shook her head. "You don't understand! Quirrell was the one! I was right all along for suspecting him, and George was standing guard outside of his office! Do you see where I'm going with this?!"

Fred's face had gone as pale as Evanna's (and she was quite pale) as he realized what she meant. Evanna tugged on his arm, saying, "We have to go find him! He might be totally fine, but I'm not taking the risk of just assuming so! We're the only ones who know where he is! Ron, Hermione, would you two cover for me if Madam Pomfrey comes back? We need to find George!"

The two ran down several flights of stairs, and Fred became furious at the first staircase that moved when they needed it. Nobody seemed to be around, so Evanna presumed that it was either still very late at night or very early in the morning. Finally, after Fred threatened to smash a portrait for asking where they were headed, they had reached Quirrell's office where they saw a horrible sight.

George was unconscious on the floor with a pool of blood by his head.

"NO!" Both redheads screamed, diving towards him.

Grabbing his hand in her own, Evanna whispered, "Wake up, George, please wake up." Tears prickled at the edges of her eyes, and she could see Fred was already crying, tears rolling down his freckled cheeks.

"We need to get him up to Madam Pomfrey," Evanna choked out.

Fred shook his head. "He's bleeding! It would be dangerous for us to move him. We should get a teacher to move him for us. Besides, we wouldn't be able to lift him on our own." Then Fred gave her a panicked look. "How are we going to get a teacher over here?!"

"Cover your ears," Evanna instructed. Fred, too worried to argue, did as he was told.

Evanna let out a long shriek. Her voice reverberated throughout the corridors, and Fred could still hear it clearly through his hands. Carefully removed his hands from his ears, he muttered, "Merlin, you've got a pair of lungs on you." Evanna offered him a sugary smile, which he rolled his eyes at.

Then the two sat in silent worry next to the unconscious Weasley, waiting with a horrible feeling of uneasiness. Just as Evanna was about to scream again, with the fear that no one had heard her first one, Professor McGonagall hurried around the corner, with Professor Flitwick and Professor Snape following close behind. They stared in shock at the three students, one of them unconscious, the other two looking up at the teachers with imploring, tear-filled eyes.

Snape bent down next to George, muttering a spell under his breath, and the blood vanished from the floor. Flitwick used the 'Wingardium Leviosa' spell to lift George in the air, ready to transport him to the Hospital Wing. McGonagall began to question Evanna and Fred, who were too frightened to object.

"So, George — " she began, but was cut off but a mournful whisper, that made Evanna want to cry again.

"I'm Fred."

Evanna put a soothing hand on the conscious twin's shoulder, watching him furiously wipe away his tears. He looked like something inside him had broken.

"I'm very sorry," Professor McGonagall breathed. "How did this happen?"

"This is all my fault, Professor!" Evanna cried, trying to keep the tears from her voice. "He was only down here to watch Quirrell because — "

"Don't you dare say it was your fault!" Fred snapped. "It wasn't! It was our choice! And besides, neither of us believed you when you said Quirrell was dangerous, so George probably let his guard down — "

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "We should get you back to the Hospital Wing, Miss Potter. You better accompany her, Mister Weasley. I'm assuming you would like to stay by your twin's side."

Fred nodded solemnly, and the two set off, back up to the Hospital Wing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'M SORRY OH MY GOSH I'M SO MEAN! :'( But you know, I was planning this for a while, and I think it's great suspense and stuff . . . No killing me please!
> 
> Please review (even if you're just going to yell at me for hurting George) ~Jayce


	11. Restored Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 11: Restored Peace
> 
> A/N: Last chapter in the Philosopher's Stone! Get ready!

George had been sent immediately to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries (because naturally, if wizards have their own banks, they must have their own hospitals too) because his injury was caused by an unknown spell (though to Evanna, it looked more like he had just been hit with a blunt object). Evanna had to stay in the Hospital Wing for a while, because she was not only injured, but she had strained her injuries by running so soon after she had been hurt. Everyone seemed to want to visit her. Parvati and Lavender had each given her some candies, Seamus had given her some chocolate frogs, Dean had drawn her a beautiful card (she _really_ needed to draw with him sometime!), the whole Quidditch team (minus George) had pitched in to get her some new drawing equipment (everyone who knew her knew that she loved to draw), Neville had gotten her some Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Malfoy and his cronies had attempted to sneak her an exploding quill, but they were caught, and so many other people that she didn't even know had come to wish her a speedy recovery that she lost count.

Ron, Hermione and Fred came to visit her the most often. It saddened her every time Fred came though. He hardly ever smiled anymore, not to mention prank. He seemed to have lost his reason to live. They didn't let him visit his brother in St. Mungo's because he was still in school, and he was falling apart on the inside with anguish, terrified that George could be dying.

Evanna couldn't help but feel utterly responsible, no matter how many times Fred insisted that she wasn't to blame. She was the one who had told them to watch over Snape and Quirrell's offices, she was the one who put them in the line of danger!

Even after having talked to Dumbledore and Hagrid, she didn't feel any less guilty. But she adored the gift that Hagrid had given her. It was a leather-bound book, filled with tons of wizarding photographs of her parents, plus there were tons of blank pages for her to add pictures to if she wanted. It made her smile every time she flipped through the pages. It was probably the best gift she had ever received.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna sat next to Fred at the end-of-year feast. He had insisted that she did, though she hadn't wanted to, still feeling immensely guilty about his twin ending up in the hospital. He seemed a bit less sad today, even though the Great Hall was decorated with Slytherin colours.

The hall went quiet when Dumbledore began to speak. "Another year gone!" Dumbledore said cheerfully. "And I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were . . . you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts . . .

"Now, as I understand it, the house cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw has four hundred and twenty-six and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two."

Evanna groaned as the Slytherin table erupted with cheers. She had almost forgotten about all those lost points! Fred put a comforting hand on her shoulder as she buried her face in her hands.

"Yes, Yes, well done, Slytherin," said Dumbledore. "However, recent events must be taken into account."

Evanna peeked at the elderly headmaster through her fingers.

"Ahem," said Dumbledore. "I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes . . .

"First — to Mr. Ronald Weasley for the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

The Gryffindors cheered; they were ahead of Hufflepuff now. Evanna could hear Percy proudly telling anyone who would listen about how Ron was his youngest brother. She gave Ron a hi-five.

"Second — to Miss Hermione Granger . . . for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."

Again, the Gryffindor table burst into applause; they were so close to beating Ravenclaw. Evanna gave Hermione a smile, but found that Hermione had obscured her face with her hands. Evanna suspected that she was crying.

"Third — to Miss Evanna Potter . . ." said Dumbledore. The room went deadly quiet. ". . . for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house sixty points."

Evanna was too flabbergasted to cheer along with the rest of her house. She counted up the points in her head. "We're tied with Slytherin," she moaned ruefully to Fred over the deafening cheers.

This news made him frown. "I don't know what happens if there's a tie . . ."

But Dumbledore raised a hand and the room was immediately silenced, every pair of eyes watched the headmaster eagerly. "It takes a great deal of bravery to risk one's life for the sake of a friend, and even more to risk two lives. I therefore award Mr. Fred and George Weasley each five points."

Fred's face, which should've been glad that Gryffindor was now in the lead, twisted into a melancholy expression. The mere mention of his twin put him in somber mood.

But then, a voice came from the entrance to the hall, "Only five each?! We deserve to beat the Slytherin by more than ten points!"

Fred's eyes lit up (and simultaneously filled with tears) and he ran up to his twin brother, who was standing in the doorway, his head bandaged. Fred nearly knocked him over with the force of his hug, and George grinned, hugging him back. "I missed you too, Freddie. I missed you too. Now, how about you stop making such a scene and we go sit next to the school's hero?"

Fred laughed with relief, and the twins came to each sit on one side of Evanna. After the shock of George's return (because most of the school had heard that he was at St. Mungo's, or at least suspected it, considering Fred's mood), the Gryffindors erupted with cheers again, and if you hadn't known what was happening, it would've sounded as if a bomb went off.

Evanna stared at the bandages around George's head, then realizing that it was rude to stare, she shifted her eyes to her lap. Tears were prickling at her eyes again. "I'm so sorry!" she blurted, looking up into George's bright blue eyes.

He just smiled at her. "Nah, it's not your fault, Evanna. I didn't believe that Quirrell was dangerous, so I wasn't ready for him. They say he hit me with something hard, and almost resorted to Muggle treatment, but thankfully they were able to fix it up pretty fast."

Evanna flung her arms around his neck, sobbing. "You could've died!"

George's cheeks flushed red. "Uh, well, I didn't! And it's all thanks to you!"

Evanna didn't accept this answer and continued to cry as George patted her awkwardly on the back. By the time the cheering students had settled down, Evanna had ceased crying. George smiled at her, and she gave a tiny smile back.

"Which means," Dumbledore announced, "we need a little change of decoration."

All of the hanging change their colours, and lions replaced snakes. Evanna grinned broadly at this. It seemed that everything had worked out in the end. Quirrell hadn't gotten the Stone, Voldemort hadn't won, but Gryffindor had, and Evanna had a surprisingly fantastic first year at Hogwarts, not to mention the friends she had made. It felt as though peace was restored to the universe.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna hugged Ron and Hermione tightly, missing her friends already, and they hadn't even left platform nine and three-quarters. Ron told both girls that they had to come and stay over the summer, to which both had wholeheartedly agreed (Evanna needed _something_ to look forward to). They walked towards the gateway to get back to platforms nine and ten. People jostled past, some waving or calling out to Evanna as they did.

"Bye, Evanna!"

"See you, Potter!"

"Still famous," said Ron, earning an eye roll from Evanna.

Evanna linked arms with Ron and Hermione, her best friends, and they passed through the gateway together. She wasn't looking forward to the summer and going back to live with the Dursleys. She wished that she could go over to Ron's or Hermione's right at this very moment, but she knew it couldn't happen. At least it might be a bit better this summer, considering that Dudley was absolutely terrified of her. The thought made her smile.

The moment they stepped through the gateway, back to the Muggle platforms, Evanna heard a small voice calling, "There she is, Mum, there she is, look!"

It was Ginny Weasley, Ron's younger sister, but she wasn't pointing at Ron.

"Evanna Potter!" she squealed. "Look, Mum! I can see — "

"Be quiet, Ginny, and it's rude to point," Mrs. Weasley scolded, before talking to her son and his friends. "Busy year?"

"I suppose," said Evanna, grinning at her friends. Mrs. Weasley wondered if there was some inside joke that she wasn't getting. "Oh, and thanks for the fudge and the sweater, Mrs. Weasley."

"Oh, it was nothing, dear. I'll be sure to do the same next year."

Evanna was about to say that she didn't need to, but stopped, thinking that might not be polite to deny the offer. She felt Fred and George each pat her on the head as they came to stand next to her, much like they had at the beginning of the year. "See you, Vanna," Fred said. "I'm sure you'll be coming over sometime this summer."

Evanna flung her arms around them, which was something that they hadn't been expecting. "Don't do anything stupid when I'm not there," she murmured in their ears, making the twins smile. Pulling away, she pointed a scolding finger at George. "Especially you."

The twins both laughed; a very good sign. Evanna was glad that Fred was getting over his overprotective stretch. He had been far too paranoid when George had first returned to the school, but he had luckily gotten over that within a few days. George had been thoroughly annoyed.

"Ready, are you?"

Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley stood, looking at Evanna — Uncle Vernon with enmity, and Aunt Petunia and Dudley with terror. Fred and George stared at Dudley as if they had never seen a boy that fat, which was more than possible. Evanna could practically see the gears in their heads turning, thinking up pranks for the obese boy.

"You must be Evanna's family!" said Mrs. Weasley, trying to sound cheerful.

"In a manner of speaking," said Uncle Vernon. "Hurry up, girl, we haven't got all day."

Evanna rolled her eyes, and hung back for a last word with Ron and Hermione. "See you over the summer, right?"

"Yeah, hope you have — er — a good holiday," said Hermione, looking uncertainly after Uncle Vernon, shocked that anyone could be so unpleasant.

"Oh, I will," said Evanna, and they were surprised at the grin that was spreading over her face. "They don't know we're not allowed to use magic at home. I'm going to have a lot of fun with Dudley this summer . . ."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meanwhile, miles away in a dark manor where white peacocks roamed on the front lawn, a man with sleek blond hair flipped over a leather book. It's pages were completely blank, except for the owner's name written on the first page.

_T.M. Riddle._

The blond-haired man knew what this diary was supposed to do and he intended for it to happen. But how to get it to Hogwarts? He couldn't possibly send it with his son; he didn't want him to muck anything up. He couldn't go to Hogwarts himself either. But he knew of no other children who were going to Hogwarts who would take to diary without question. The man ran a finger across the front of the book, still deep in thought.

What to do, oh, what to do . . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yeeeah suspense! Did you like the first book? and YAY GEORGE IS BACK!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	12. Unanswered and Unreceived Letters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 12: Unanswered and Unreceived Letters
> 
> A/N: This is the first chapter of the Chamber of Secrets! I hope it's okay. I'm kinda sick right now, so that's disappointing, especially since it's almost my birthday (on Valentine's Day :D). But anyways, have fun reading!

"She hasn't been replying."

"Well, perhaps she's busy, dear."

"Or perhaps she's vacationing with her family and can't reply."

Hermione sighed irritably. Her parents just didn't understand Evanna's situation. Evanna's family didn't like her, so the likeliness of the four of them vacationing together was very slim, and Evanna couldn't possibly be busy _all_ summer! She had already owled Ron and knew that Evanna wasn't with him, or responding to any of his letters either. Both were starting to worry about their best friend.

Hermione tried to remember what Evanna had said at the end of the school year about the summer. She had said that she would be needing something to look forward to. She had really wanted to go to Ron or Hermione's house. So why didn't she answer?

Perhaps Hermione was being paranoid, but with Evanna, anything was possible.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I think we should run through the schedule one more time. We should all be in position at eight o'clock. Petunia, you will be — ?"

"In the lounge, waiting to welcome them graciously to our home."

"Good, good. And Dudley?"

"I'll be waiting to open the door. 'May I take your coats, Mr. and Mrs. Mason?'"

"They'll _love_ him!"

Evanna watched this conversation with a completely uninterested expression on her face. She frankly didn't care whether her uncle got his deal or not; she wasn't a part of this family.

"Excellent, Dudley," said Uncle Vernon. Then he rounded on Evanna. "And you?"

"I'll be in my bedroom, making no noise and pretending I'm not there," said Evanna tonelessly.

Perfect example right there. The Dursleys may be her only living relatives, but they didn't give a damn about her. The only thing they cared about was making sure that nobody knew about her. She was, in their eyes, a freak. But, in the eyes of non-Muggles, she was a witch.

Last year, Evanna had attended the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It had been the best year of her life. She had learned magic, became a Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, helped illegally transport a dragon, stopped Voldemort for the second time, and made great friends. Or, at least, she thought she had.

None of her friends had written to her like they'd said they would. She understood George not writing (she _had_ been a key part in landing him in the hospital after all) and Fred (maybe feeling some animosity towards her for landing his twin in the hospital), but why didn't Ron or Hermione? They were her best friends! Weren't they?

Shaking her so-called friends from her mind, she continued to boredly listen to her relatives talk.

"I will lead them into the lounge, introduce you, Petunia, and pour them drinks. At eight-fifteen — "

"I'll announce dinner."

"And, Dudley, you'll say — "

"'May I take you through to the dining room, Mrs. Mason?'"

"My perfect little gentleman!"

"And you?"

"I'll be in my room, making no noise and pretending I'm not there," said Evanna flatly, examining her nails (something she didn't normally do, but it was to put emphasis on the fact that she _did not care_ ).

"Precisely. Now, we should aim to get in a few good compliments at dinner. Petunia, any ideas?"

"Vernon tells me you're a wonderful golfer, Mr. Mason . . . Do tell me where you bought your dress, Mrs. Mason . . ."

"Perfect . . . Dudley?"

"How about — 'We had to write an essay about our hero at school, Mr. Mason, and I wrote about you.'"

If Evanna hadn't had such a perfect poker face, she would've had a hard time not laughing.

"And you, girl?"

"I'll be in my room, making no noise and pretending I'm not there."

This was definitely _not_ her best birthday.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna kicked her bed angrily. "Stupid house-elf!" she growled. "Stupid, stupid house-elf!" She flopped onto her bed, screaming angrily into her pillow.

Evanna had received an unwelcome guest: a house-elf named Dobby. He had come at the worst moment possible — when she was supposed to be in her bedroom, making no noise and pretending she wasn't there. Of course, he had started crying when she offered him a seat, and had started hitting his head against the window loudly, and against the wall, and against Evanna's desk lamp, and so on . . . Apparently, the elf was forced to commit self harm whenever he spoke ill of his family. And he had been stealing her letters, in an attempt to make her think her friends had forgotten about her! The worse thing the elf had done was use a Hover Charm to drop pudding on the floor when Evanna had refused to say she wasn't going to Hogwarts. (She _had_ to go to Hogwarts! It was more of a home to her than this hellhole!) Naturally, the Ministry of Magic thought that she had used that charm, and threatened to expel her if it happened again, tipping the Dursleys off about her not being allowed to use magic.

Now that they had no reason to fear her magic, Uncle Vernon had fit bars to her window, and a cat-flap to her door, so they could slip her food. She was only allowed to leave her room twice a day to go to the bathroom, and other than that, she was under some Dursley form of house arrest. The worst bit of this was that they were going to keep her from going to Hogwarts.

Evanna grabbed her sketchbook, flipping through the pages. And to think, she was going to rip this all up, thinking that none of these people were her friends! There were drawings of Hagrid, the Weasley twins, Ron, Hermione, Parvati, Lavender, Neville, Dean, Seamus, the whole Quidditch team (excluding herself), and so many more. Now she may never see these people again, if the Dursleys got their way.

Evanna could no longer hold back her emotions. She curled into a ball on her bed and began to cry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I don't like this."

Ron paced up and down in the living room of the Burrow. His older brothers, Fred and George, sat on the couch watching him, but not teasingly. They were just as worried as he was.

"She hasn't answered any of _my_ letters. She hasn't answered any of _your_ letters. She hasn't even answered any of _Hermione's_ letters! And it can't be Errol's fault because otherwise Evanna would've answered Hermione at least. Something must be wrong."

"Agreed," the twins chorused.

Fred (was it Fred? Ron could never tell; something Evanna admonished him for) frowned. "But how will we find out what's wrong if she doesn't answer our owls?"

He never got an answer, for at that moment the front door slammed, and their father, Arthur Weasley, entered the house. "Hello boys!" he said cheerfully. Upon seeing his three youngest sons' worried expressions, he frowned. "Still no news from Evanna?"

The three boys shook their heads gloomily.

"Well, _I_ have news about her, though whether it's good or not is debatable . . ."

Arthur sat down with his sons, who had perked up slightly at the prospect of hearing from their best friend.

"Earlier today, I was talking to Mafalda Hopkirk, of the Improper Use of Magic Office. I happened to mention to her that you three were trying to get in contact with Evanna — I think we were debating the usefulness of the Muggle fellytone . . .

"Anyways, she said that three days ago Evanna had used magic. Evanna is, of course, underage, and she had done it in front of _Muggles_ no less! So Mafalda had sent her an official warning. I'm sorry that I don't know anything else, boys, I truly am . . ."

Ron, Fred, and George exchanged glances. Sure, Evanna had jokingly threatened to curse her cousin, but she would never actually use magic unless she was in danger. This thought made them go pale. Could Evanna really be in danger? Well, with Evanna, anything was possible . . .

Arthur went to go talk to his wife, Molly, but not before shooting a concerned glance back at his sons; he wasn't sure they'd ever really been this worried before. Once he had left the room, George said, "We _need_ to talk to her and find out what happened."

"How?" Ron asked. "You said yourself that we can't contact her if she doesn't answer our owls!"

"Actually, that was me," Fred corrected. "But now I think I have a plan, though it involves a night when Dad is out of the house."

Ron groaned, finally sitting down in an armchair next to the twins. "But that might not happen before we go to Hogwarts! And what if Evanna is in _real_ danger or something?!"

Both twins frowned, knowing that their younger brother was right. But, communicating only through eye contact, as they sometimes did, they also knew that Fred's plan wouldn't work unless their father was out of the house. Nevertheless, Fred explained his plan to Ron. It was an excellent plan, but he was right about their father needing to be out of the house.

The three sat with a sort of defeated look until their mother called them for dinner. The only thought that ran through their minds as they sat down to eat with their family was, _How are we going to get in touch with Evanna?_

Dinner was peaceful enough, with Percy being as closed off as he had been the rest of the summer, and Ginny talking nonstop about Evanna Potter as per usual. That is, until an owl suddenly crashed into their father's chest, carrying a letter. It looked very official, from Ron's perspective at least, with its flawless cursive address and its creamy envelope. He noticed Percy's expression transform into one of excitement as his father flipped the letter over, revealing that it was closed by a Ministry of Magic seal. You could always trust Percy to get excited about those sorts of things.

Ron watched his father mouth the letter as he read it, his face going from interest to annoyance. Wondering what could be wrong, he asked, "What's up, Dad? More raids?"

"Yes, but they didn't disclose how many; I could be there all night for all I know! Unfortunately, they demand my presence immediately . . ." He sighed, kissed his wife on the cheek, and went to their fireplace to floo away.

Fred, George and Ron exchanged knowing looks. He wasn't going to be here tonight. It was time for their plan to commence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Come on, keep moving!"

"Why can't I drive? We're the same age!"

"Because I'm older by a few minutes, now both of you, shut up! You don't want to be caught, do you?"

Fred, George, and Ron made their way outside, to their garage. Their father had a car there, which they were going to use to get to Evanna's house. George was having a heated debate with Fred about who should drive; Fred thought he should because he was a bit older and George thought he should because he was a bit more mature. Ron was just annoyed that they weren't moving faster; Evanna could be in serious trouble for all they knew!

Finally, the three freckle-faced boys climbed into the Ford Anglia, with Fred and George in the front seats (Fred had won the argument and sat in the driver's seat), with Ron in the back. Fred started it up, and they drove out of the garage and _up into the air_! Their father, being somewhat Muggle obsessed, had bought the car and enchanted it to be able fly. The boys had never been more happy about his obsession.

Flying over the clouds, headed to Surrey, Ron stared out the window, whispering, "Don't worry, Evanna. We're coming."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So what did you think? Please tell me in a review, that would be a fantastic birthday present ;)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	13. The Beauty of the Burrow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 13: The Beauty of the Burrow
> 
> A/N: First, I just wanted to say, thank you all for wishing me a happy birthday! I had a great day :) Also, thank everyone who reviewed, I love reviews and I'll respond to every single one, except for guests because I can't respond to those. I've included a new chapter for your enjoyment :D Read and Review!

"Evanna! Wake up!"

"Unless you're going to take me away from this hellhole, I'd rather not," Evanna replied groggily, still half-asleep. She was having an amazing dream about being back at Hogwarts, and she really wanted to keep this dream alive.

"That's exactly what we're going to do!"

Evanna rubbed her eyes, and glanced at her window, blinking against the bright car headlights that were shining at her. Wait, car headlights?! But she was on the second floor! She practically flew out of bed, pushing open her window to see, through the bars, none other than Ronald Weasley.

"Ron!" she exclaimed happily.

"What are we, chopped liver?"

Evanna glanced at the front seat of the car, and grinned even more broadly when she saw two identical faces looking at her. "Fred! George!" Then, she did a double take. "How is that car — ?" Shaking her head, she quickly continued. "Never mind, just why are you three here?"

"Well, when you didn't answer any of our letters — _are you locked in your room_?"

George sounded worried at this point, and Evanna couldn't help but sigh. "Yes, the Dursleys found out that I'm not allowed to use magic, and, with nothing left to fear, they locked me in here! They're not going to let me out to go to Hogwarts, but if I magic myself out I'll be expelled!"

Evanna sounded close to hyperventilation, so Fred jumped in. "Vanna, we're going to help you get out of here, okay?"

Evanna swallowed her pessimistic thoughts (What if they were _caught_?), and nodded.

"Now, I need you to tie this rope around the bars . . ."

Evanna did as she was told, making sure that the rope was securely tightly around the metal rod. Fred revved the car's engine, and drove away from the window. Evanna stepped back, watching as the bars loosened with a grinding noise that echoed through her ears. She glanced at the crack under her door, worried that the Dursleys might wake, but no lights were turned on. The bars finally gave in, falling to the ground with a muffled thud.

"Fantastic! But wait, my trunk and broom and everything is in the cupboard under the stairs," Evanna moaned, looking at her locked bedroom door with disappointment. Even if it wasn't locked, she knew that the cupboard would be.

"Leave it to us," George said assuredly, as he and his twin crept through her open window and across her bedroom floor. "Do you have a hairpin we could use?" he asked, as the twins stood by the locked door.

Evanna goggled at them in bewilderment. "Er — yeah, sure."

She pulled a bobby pin from a small box on her dresser. George took it and began twiddling the pin in the lock, as if it were a key. Evanna watched in fascination as, after a few minutes, the lock gave a satisfying click and the door swung open with ease.

Fred let out a quiet laugh at Evanna's awed expression. "A lot of wizards think it's a waste of time, knowing this sort of Muggle trick, but we feel they're skills worth learning, even if they are a bit slow."

"Obviously," Evanna murmured, still staring at the now open door. "You have _got_ to teach me that!"

The twins chuckled, sneaking catlike down the stairs. Evanna began to toss things at Ron, who gladly put them in the back of the car. He didn't seem so glad when he was hit in the face with Evanna's thick sketchbook, but quickly got over it when the twins reappeared, hauling Evanna's heavy trunk across the room. Fred seemed to be stuck with most of the weight on him as George was using only one hand. He used his other hand to toss Evanna's Nimbus Two Thousand to Ron. Evanna gave him a grateful smile; she had almost forgotten about her broomstick.

Fred climbed into the car, pulling the trunk from the inside with Ron, while George and Evanna pushed from Evanna's room. Evanna kept glancing back at her door, which was closed again. Any minute now, she was sure that the room would be flooded with light and the Dursleys would catch her and the Weasley boys, perhaps punishing the lot of them. But that didn't happen, at least, not until they had fully pushed the trunk into the car.

George had just given Evanna a sweeping bow, gesturing to the window ("Ladies first!" Evanna had responded to him with an eye roll), when Hedwig had given a screech. Evanna realised with a jolt that she had nearly left without her owl.

"THAT RUDDY OWL!"

She grabbed up the cage, tossing it to Fred, who just barely caught it, and forced George to go through the window first. She could see light under her bedroom door, and hear Uncle Vernon forcing the locks open; of course, he needn't have, because the Weasley twins had previously unlocked them, but he had no way of knowing that. She had barely climbed onto the window sill when heavy-laden footsteps stomped across the room and a beefy hand grabbed her ankle. At the same moment, all three Weasleys had grabbed her arms, trying to help her into the car.

"Petunia! She's getting away! SHE'S GETTING AWAY!"

Evanna struggled against Uncle Vernon's vice-like grip, staring frantically at the Weasley boys. They had heard her voice when she talked about the prospect of not returning to Hogwarts and could tell that the thought frightened her; and they really didn't want her to start hyperventilating. The three boys nodded to each other and gave a final, desperate tug, causing Evanna to fly into their arms, and her uncle to topple onto her bedroom floor.

They each grappled to get to their respective seats. Evanna grabbed tightly on the back of George's seat, squealing, "Drive, drive, drive!"

Fred took her advice, slamming his foot down on the acceleration. The old blue car flew off into the night sky, leaving all three Dursleys staring out of Evanna's window with dumbfounded expressions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna was officially in love with the Weasleys' house. It was the most absurd place; it looked as if it had started as a shack, but rooms had been added here and there until it was several stories high and looked like a rather cozy home. It was amazingly crooked, Evanna wondered if it might fall over had it not been inhabited by people with access to magic. It also had four or five chimneys. A lopsided sign near the entrance read _The Burrow_. Evanna had an urge to draw it.

"It's not much," Ron said, but Evanna cut him off.

"It's _wonderful_!"

Evanna just gazed at its inexplicable beauty (at least in her eyes) and grinned widely. She found it difficult to listen to Ron's plan when this house was practically begging to be depicted on paper. But as her green irises swept over the house in all its crooked glory, drinking it all in, she noticed that the door had been flung open by a short, plump woman who was positively fuming. The boys seemed to have noticed her too, because their faces started to go pale.

" _Ah_ ," said Fred.

"Oh dear," said George.

Mrs. Weasley stomped up to them, looking from one guilty face to the next in pure rage. Evanna, who had only ever seen Mrs. Weasley smiling, wondered what was about to happen next.

"'Morning, Mum," George said, in what he clearly thought was a jaunty, winning voice. Evanna suppressed a giggle behind her hands at his failure to look innocent. But she backed away in shock when Mrs. Weasley exploded. She hadn't thought that the kind-faced woman had it in her, but then again, people never thought that Evanna had it in her either. Even more of a shock was when Mrs. Weasley addressed Evanna, but not in a ranting tone at all.

"I'm very pleased to see you, Evanna dear," Mrs. Weasley said kindly. "Come in and have some breakfast."

Evanna hesitantly followed the ginger-haired woman inside the Burrow, and was even more amazed at the inside. There were self-scrubbing dishes, and a scarf being knitted itself in a nearby armchair. The fireplace was large enough for her to stand up to her full height in. Books were scattered around the living room, all with interesting titles. But what really caught her attention was a grandfather clock with nine different hands. Each hand had a picture of one of the Weasleys, and each pointed to one of the words surrounding the clock face instead of numbers. She noted that Ron, Fred, and George's had just moved to _Home_ , alongside Percy, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley's. Bill, Charlie, and Mr. Weasley's pointed to _Work_.

Evanna sat down at the kitchen table with Ron, George, and Fred, still gazing around. Her relatives would've hated the disorderliness of the place, but in Evanna's eyes, it just reflected the personality and beauty of the family that lived there.

Mrs. Weasley was shooting disapproving looks at her three youngest sons as she threw sausages into the frying pan. Every now and then she muttered things like "don't know _what_ you were thinking of," and " _never_ would have believed it."

"Of course, I don't blame _you_ , dear," she assured Evanna, tipping eight or nine sausages onto her plate. "Arthur and I have been worried about you, too. Just last night we were saying we'd come and get you ourselves if you hadn't written back to Ron or Fred and George by Friday. But really" (she was now adding three fried eggs to her plate), "flying an illegal car halfway across the country — anyone could have seen you — "

"It was _cloudy_ , Mum!" Fred protested, through a mouthful of egg. Evanna shot him a disgusted look.

"You keep your mouth closed while you're eating!" Mrs. Weasley snapped.

"They were starving her, Mum!" George complained.

"And you!" said Mrs. Weasley, though Evanna noticed that George's mouth had been clear of food when he had spoken.

Mrs. Weasley was just handing Evanna a piece of buttered toast when Ginny arrived in the kitchen. She took one look at Evanna and let out a squeal, darting out of the room again. Evanna watched the only Weasley daughter run up the stairs, and heard a door slam. She looked over at Ron, who was snickering in his hands.

"Ginny," he muttered to her. "She's obsessed. It's rather annoying actually."

"Obsessed?"

"About _you_ , Vanna. Been going on about you all summer," Fred said. "You don't know how weird it is for her to be this shy, she never shuts up normally."

"You better hope she gets used to having you in the house, because that's who you're bunking with," George added, with a smothered laugh. Evanna just gave him a light shove.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first time it happened, Evanna was walking by their room. The explosion, though a small one, caught her off guard. She nearly fell over, but regained her balance and asked Ron what they were doing in there. He had replied with a shrug, but reassured her that the explosions that came from their room was perfectly normal.

The next time it happened, she tried to ignore it. But it was getting harder and harder to ignore the more she tried. They were her best friends too, and what if they were getting hurt? So finally, after yet another explosion, she knocked on the Weasley twins' door.

"Fred? George? What are you doing in there?" Evanna asked, sounding concerned for their health.

"Nothing!" came two nearly identical voices.

Evanna rolled her eyes at their sad attempt to sound innocent, and opened their door. She gasped in awe at the state of their room. It was filled with different coloured smoke, that swirled around the ceiling. Potion ingredients lay scattered everywhere, and the twin boys sat around a cauldron, which seemed to have just blown up its contents on Fred's face. He was just wiping away some orange gunk from his freckled skin when Evanna had intruded.

"Uh, hey Evanna," George said, like a child who had been caught in the act of stealing from the cookie jar. "You — you're not going to tell Mum about this, right?"

"Depends," Evanna said, still looking around their room. "What exactly is _this_ anyways?"

"This," Fred said proudly, "is the beginnings of our joke shop!"

"Joke shop?" Evanna asked, curiously.

"Well, _yeah_ ," George said, motioning around the room. "It's our ambition to open a joke shop, filled with all sorts of original pranks and things. We've been working on this project forever, but Mum wants us to work in the Ministry or something boring like that, so that's why it has to stay secret."

Evanna did a full circle on the spot, drinking in all the things that were going on within the room. Potions bubbling, smoke rising, ingredients rolling around the floor. Lists plastered the walls, with things crossed and checked off, Evanna noticed that one large item was circled. _Skiving Snackboxes — Fainting Fancies, Fever Fudge, Nosebleed Nougat, and Puking Pastilles._

"You two are truly brilliant," Evanna breathed, still examining the different lists on the walls. "Have you already made these?"

"The crossed out ones are the ones that failed — " Fred began.

"And the checked off ones are the ones that succeeded," George finished.

"And this one?" Evanna asked, pointing at the large circle Skiving Snackboxes.

Fred's grin widened. "Ah yes, our pride and joy; The Skiving Snackboxes. We're currently working towards making them. These seemingly harmless sweets will have two sides. One side will make the consumer violently sick, while the other will cure them instantly. It's for _skiving_ off classes, you see."

"Of course," Evanna said, rolling her eyes. "But in all seriousness, I promise to not tell your mother, if you two promise to let me help out in any way I can."

The twins grinned at each other, then each grabbed one of Evanna's hands and shook. "You've got yourself a deal, Miss Potter!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I feel like the twins didn't just start their WWW business in their sixth year (Evanna's fourth). They must've started earlier, if it was a lifelong dream. And it was hinted at, like the fact that explosions from their room were a regular occurrence.
> 
> Please review review review! ~Jayce


	14. Different Kinds of Riches

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 14: Different Kinds of Riches
> 
> A/N: I wasn't going to make this chapter so much about the Evanna/Weasleys relationship, but that's what it became. It a bit shorter than I would've liked, but I hope it's still all right. As I said, this chapter is about Evanna getting closer to the Weasleys, mostly George and Ginny :) Thanks for reading.

"Percy! You wanna join us?" Evanna called out to the oldest Weasley brother who still lived in the country.

"No, but thank you, Evanna. I'm afraid that I'm very busy," Percy replied, quickly heading towards his bedroom.

Evanna shrugged, but slung her Nimbus Two Thousand over her shoulder and followed Fred, George, and Ron out to the small paddock their family owned. It was a perfect place for flying, as it was surrounded by trees, thus hidden from view of the nearby village, as long as they didn't fly too high. They were headed to go practice Quidditch by throwing apples at each other to catch or beat away (because real Quidditch balls would be too hard to explain, should they fly off to the village).

"Wish I knew what he was up to," Fred frowned, referring to his older brother. "He's not himself. His exam results came the day before you did; twelve O.W.L.s and he hardly gloated at all."

"Ordinary Wizarding Levels," George explained to Evanna, who had little idea of how the wizarding world worked. "Bill got twelve, too. If we're not careful, we'll have another Head Boy in the family. I don't think I could stand the shame."

Evanna laughed. "Oh, I'm sure you'll figure out _some_ way," she said, thinking of all the pranks that the twins _already_ played on Percy.

After a long pause, George spoke again. "Dunno how Mum and Dad are going to afford all our school stuff this year. Five sets of Lockhart books! And Ginny needs robes and a wand and everything . . ."

"I could help," Evanna said; she had inherited a small fortune from her parents, which sat in Gringotts, waiting to be used.

George spun to face her, hurt flashing across his blue eyes. "What are you saying? That we're poor?!" His hurt expression was quickly turning to rage. "That we need help from a _twelve-year-old_ to pay for our books?!"

Evanna, realizing what she had accidentally insinuated, cried out, "No, George, I didn't mean — !"

"We don't _need_ your help! We don't _want_ your help!" George shouted, storming off in the opposite direction.

Evanna watched him hopelessly, then turned to Fred and Ron. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I'm so stupid! I shouldn't have said that, I didn't mean to suggest anything, I just wanted to help . . ." She was obviously struggling to keep tears out of her eyes.

Fred put an arm on Evanna's shoulder, while Ron gave her a comforting smile. "It's all right. We get it."

"Thanks. But," Evanna said softly, pulling away from Fred, "I need to find George."

Evanna retreated off in the direction George had disappeared to. Ron looked like he was about to chase after her, so Fred moved his hand to Ron's shoulder, holding him back. "Ron, she wouldn't want you chasing after her. She needs to handle this on her own."

"I hate it when you're right," Ron muttered. He shook Fred's hand off his shoulder, but made no movements of pursuing his friend. He just stared after her retreating figure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George sat with his knees pulled close to his chest. He couldn't believe what she had just done. He couldn't believe what _he_ had just done. He let out a groan and leaned his head back against the wall, staring at the ceiling of his and Fred's old treehouse. They hardly played in it anymore, but it was still sturdy, and George often used it to escape his family for a while.

It was quiet for the longest time, until he heard footsteps pounding on the grass below. _Oh joy_ , he thought icily. Someone was coming to get him. He heard the rope ladder being climbed, and then someone coming tentatively towards him. Then there was the sound of someone sliding their back down the wall to sit next to him. He didn't move. He just kept his eyes aimed at the ceiling. He already knew who it was.

She didn't speak, just sat beside him. Her hands rested on her knees and her green eyes were focused on her lap. Her silence was driving him up the wall. _Say something!_ he thought desperately. _Yell! Tell me I shouldn't have run! That I should accept your help! Just say something!_

It was a while before she finally said anything, but as she spoke, George could hear the tears in her voice. "I'm sorry."

His eyes snapped towards her. She refused to meet his gaze, still staring at her lap, with tears sparkling on her pale cheeks.

"I know that you and your family don't have money available at your beck and call, but I also know that you're not poor."

George said nothing, just watched her speak.

"You have a beautiful family of wonderful people, with themselves at the very back of their minds. But you are forced to endure ridicule that you don't deserve, by brats like Draco Malfoy with money up to their ears and an attitude to match.

"But you know, I think most people would rather be friends with those who are rich in kindness rather than those who are rich in galleons. You know that, don't you?"

George gave a small nod, taking in every word.

"I didn't mean to upset you before, I just wanted to help. I would give all the money I own to your family, I hope you know that. But I also know that you Weasleys are too proud to accept it."

George gave a watery laugh. He then felt his tear-stained cheeks in surprise. He hadn't realized he had been crying.

"You know that I love you like a big brother, right George?"

She turned to pierce him with those bottle-green eyes. He suddenly flung him arms around her. She would've fallen over in surprise if she hadn't already been sitting down. "G-George?"

"Evanna, I'm sorry."

Evanna smiled softly, hugging George back. "It's all right, Georgie. It's all right."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron and Evanna were chucking apples at the twins, for them to practice beating away. The twins each had a Cleansweep Five, which weren't too bad compared to Ron's old Shooting Star, which was often surpassed by passing butterflies. Of course, they didn't have anything on Evanna's Nimbus, but she didn't gloat and often let them ride it.

Fred was doing a better job of beating the fruit away than George, but that might've just been because of Evanna's aim, which was becoming more hopeless the harder she tried.

"Sorry!" she called, as another apple flew far too low for George to get in time.

George was patient though, giving her tips as her throws became more and more miserable.

"Try stepping into your throw," George suggested, flying a bit lower so that he'd have a better chance of beating away Evanna's apples.

Evanna took any advice he gave her, until finally, one of the apples she had tossed flew directly at George, and he batted it away with ease. "I did it!" Evanna cheered, as the twins flew down to switch places with her and Ron. Fred gave Evanna a hi-five, hiding his snickers behind his other hand.

Finally, Evanna was in the air, zooming as high as she could without being in the view of Muggles. It felt so freeing to be on her broom, flying along the tips on the trees, twirling around in the air. Evanna closed her eyes and spread out her arms, clinging to the broomstick with her legs only, just inhaling the fresh air. She finally returned to earth when she heard Ron batting away apples (he said that he would probably be a Keeper if he were going on the team).

"Hey Evanna, go long!" George yelled throwing a bright red apple as far as he could.

Evanna streaked towards it, gaining on the palm-sized red orb. She stretched out her hand, but missed by mere inches, and followed the apple in a steep dive towards the ground. Unfortunately, a tree seemed to be in her way. She dodged through the branches, hand outstretched again, eyes focused on her tasty red prize. Just a few more inches and . . .

Evanna flew out of the woods with the apple in hand, a look full of pride on her face.

George let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. When she had entered those woods, he thought for sure she'd get injured, but here she was, taking a large bite from the fruit with a look of satisfaction, no injuries in sight. She obviously wasn't the youngest Seeker in a century for nothing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ginny was amazed by how _normal_ Evanna Potter was. She might've had a scar on her forehead, but she didn't do anything special or unusual. Evanna wasn't given special treatment. Nobody walked on eggshells around her either.

Ginny was amazed when Ron told her just what he thought of her hair after Fred had drenched her in egg yolk (long story), and even more so when Evanna just laughed, throwing an egg at him. Soon, a food fight had begun, to their mum's great displeasure.

Being too starstruck to speak to Evanna, it was problematic when the two girls went to sleep at night. Evanna was so nice, and always tried to make conversation, but Ginny was too timid to reply. But this all changed the night before they were going to Diagon Alley.

Evanna hadn't been able to sleep, so she had opened her sketchbook and begun to draw. Ginny hadn't been able to sleep either and watched the older girl intently. Evanna was so focused on her pencil's sweeping movements that she didn't bother looking up when Ginny peered over her shoulder to see what Evanna was drawing.

"Is that me?"

Evanna smiled up at Ginny, giving her a nod. "You like it? I think I managed to capture your personality, but I'm not sure. You never really talk."

Ginny blushed. "Sorry."

"Oh, don't be sorry," Evanna said, returning to her page. "I understand what it's like to be shy around new people. You should've seen me on the first day of school."

The two girls were silent again for a few minutes, as Ginny tried to imagine Evanna being quiet in class, while there were whispers around her about her scar. Perhaps she had always taken up refuge at the back of the class, trying to concentrate on anything but the many people surrounding her.

"Are you excited for Hogwarts?" Evanna asked, barely looking up from her sketch.

Ginny gave a small nod.

"That's good. You're just lucky you weren't there last year, there was enough excitement to fill a whole book."

Ginny let out a quiet laugh. "Do you think this year will be exciting too?"

"I kind of hope not. I've had enough excitement to last a lifetime. I mean, did the boys tell you about the Philosopher's Stone?"

"Yeah, it sounded like a really scary adventure!"

"It definitely was."

There was another long silence, only broken when Evanna announced that she had finished her drawing.

Ginny thought it looked very lifelike. In the drawing, Ginny was laughing and playing Quidditch. She had the Quaffle (her brothers must've mentioned to Evanna that she was a Chaser), and was zooming away from some tiny figures in the background. By the looks of it, they were her brothers, Fred, George, and Ron. There was another player with a braid, speeding through the air as she grappled for a tiny speck, which Ginny could only assume was Evanna.

"This is how I imagine it someday," Evanna admitted, referring to the picture. "One day, we'll all be friends, and play Quidditch together, and everything. It doesn't have to be soon, but one day I swear that I will win you over."

The way she phrased it, and the way she looked so serious, made Ginny laugh. Evanna grinned, knowing that she was making progress with the youngest Weasley. Maybe not quick progress, but progress nonetheless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I couldn't help but have a little Evanna/George argument. Because sometimes we say things that can be perceived the wrong way, especially about people's wealth or personality. I know that I've taken things the wrong way and said stupid things too. Anyways, enough about that :P
> 
> Please, please, please review! ~Jayce


	15. Egotistical as They Come

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 15: Egotistical as They Come
> 
> A/N: I'm sorry, I had to include a Narnia quote in this chapter XD here's a challenge for you though: whoever finds it first (and tells me in a review) gets ten points to their house! (Not real points, unless they invent a way to give points to each other on Pottermore.) (If you're on Pottermore, feel free to friend me! I'm EchoMoon17744 :P) SO GO FIND THAT QUOTE :D HAPPY HUNTING!

Evanna choked as she climbed out of a completely unfamiliar fireplace. Why she was in a fireplace in the first place was a mystery to her. Why couldn't they have used a slightly normal way of travel?!

But instead of flying cars or broomsticks, the Weasley family had decided to get to Diagon Alley using a nifty thing called Floo Powder. It was a green powder which you threw in a fire, then all you needed to do was step into the now emerald green flames, state your destination clearly, and you'd get whisked away, only to appear in the fireplace of your destination.

Evanna, who was often favoured by luck (and by that, she is actually the _unluckiest person ever_ ), had inhaled some ash just as she was trying to speak, so instead of 'Diagon Alley', she had said 'diagonally' and ended up . . . wherever she was.

Evanna dusted herself off as best she could, and gazed at her surroundings. It was obviously a shop, but it was like no shop that she had seen before in Diagon Alley. It was dark, and filled with items that _had_ to be filled with dark magic. Evanna slipped towards the exit, hoping to escape the creepy store before anyone could find her (it seemed like the sort of place all sorts of shifty people would hang out), but she saw someone heading towards the door. Internally groaning, she darted into a cabinet and closed the door almost all the way, leaving a tiny crack so that she wouldn't mistakenly lock herself in. Because she remembered, as every sensible person does, that you should never ever shut yourself up in a wardrobe.

Peeking through the crack, she had a quick intake of breath. The first person who entered was her enemy, Draco Malfoy. The second could only be Draco's father; he had the same pointed face, the same cold gray eyes, and the same shade of blonde hair, though his hair was much longer than Draco's, stretching to his mid-back. Draco immediately began to browse the shop items boredly as his father rang the bell on the counter, drumming his fingers impatiently.

"But what good is a racing broom if I'm not on the House team?" Draco was saying, obviously continuing a conversation they had started earlier. "I mean, Evanna Potter got a _Nimbus Two Thousand_ last year with special permission from McGonagall! And she's already on the Gryffindor team, as a Seeker. They only let her on the team because she's _famous_! Famous for having a _stupid_ scar on her forehead!"

Evanna swallowed a retort. Draco was more or less right; when Lord Voldemort had tried to kill her, she had managed to survive, leaving only a souvenir of a lightning bolt shaped scar on her forehead. Though she usually tried to keep it hidden behind her dark red hair because people's eyes had the tendency to get attracted to it.

Mr. Malfoy had started talking with the shop owner about selling some dark items when Evanna realized that Draco was getting closer and closer to where she hid. She bit her lip, ideas racing through her head. What would she do if he opened the door? Jinx him? No, not with his father here. Pretend he had just saved her from being locked in the cabinet forever? No, then she'd have to explain how she came to be trapped in the first place. Just as she was settled on playing dead if Draco opened the door, his father called to him, and they left.

Evanna let out a long breath and, as soon as the coast was clear, she darted out of the shop. Of course, she still had little to no idea where she was. A nearby sign read, Knockturn Alley ( _nocturnally_ , Evanna noted, just as Diagon Alley was _diagonally_ ), but seeing as she had never heard of Knockturn Alley, that didn't really help her narrow down where she was. Even worse was that people kept being creepy and asking if she was looking for a shrunken head or trying to sell her various limbs that were not attached to any bodies.

She had just refused a book on dark spells, when she heard a familiar voice call out, "EVANNA! What d'yeh think yer doin' down there?"

Evanna looked up gratefully at the mass of bushy hair. The giant of a man walked over to her, knocking people over as he did. "Hagrid," Evanna said with relief. "I got lost with Floo Powder — "

Hagrid pulled her away from the dark alleyway, and soon she was blinking in the bright sunlight that lit up Diagon Alley. "Yeh don' want to be around Knockturn Alley, very dodgy place, Evanna."

"I _know_ , I was _lost_ ," Evanna protested, before hearing another familiar voice calling out her name. She grinned at her best friend as she was pulled into a tight hug. "Hermione! I've missed you over the summer!"

"Oh Evanna, Ron wrote and told me why you hadn't been writing — _Oh Evanna_!" Hermione wailed, hugging her best friend so tightly that Evanna thought for a second that she might've cracked her ribs.

"I'm fine, Hermione — just looking for the Weasleys," Evanna reassured her, prying herself from the bushy-haired girl's grip.

After Hermione told Evanna that she would help her look for the Weasleys, Hagrid left them so that he could buy some Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent, whatever that was. Hermione lead Evanna inside Gringotts to meet her parents ("Pleased to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Granger." "Oh, it's splendid to meet you too, Evanna. Hermione's told us so much about you!") and to wait for the Weasleys, who Evanna knew needed to get money from the bank, just like she did.

Soon enough, seven familiar ginger heads appeared and both Evanna and Hermione waved frantically to get their attention. Mrs. Weasley pulled Evanna into an even tighter hug than Hermione had, wailing about how she shouldn't have let Evanna use the Floo Powder alone and how worried she had been. Evanna reassured the woman that she was fine, and that she had only been a street away. Of course, after she mentioned that this street had been Knockturn Alley, she received a completely different reaction.

Mrs. Weasley burst out crying; Fred, George, and Ron looked suddenly envious; Percy and Mr. Weasley began to scold the three youngest Weasley boys, saying how they should never go into Knockturn Alley, and Ginny gave Evanna a half-awed, half-scared expression. Evanna just stood awkwardly to the side with Hermione.

The conversation suddenly changed when Mr. Weasley saw Hermione's parents, who were exchanging their Muggle money for Knuts, Sickles, and Galleons. Mr. Weasley was fascinated by Muggles and had bombarded Evanna with questions all summer. ("Tell me, what exactly is the function of a rubber duck?") Now he was busy discussing money with Mr. and Mrs. Granger, and the remaining Weasleys seemed to realize what they were supposed to be doing, so they set off to get their money from their vaults.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna hated being short. Hanging around the very tall Weasley family all summer made her feel even more so. Thus, when they found their path into Flourish and Blotts blocked by a crowd of people, she vaulted onto George's back, him being the tallest Weasley nearby.

"Oi!" George yelped with surprise, suddenly off-balance.

"Shut up and lift me higher!" Evanna demanded, climbing higher up onto his shoulders, squinting over the heads of the many witches and wizards (but mostly witches) ahead of them. Then she spotted a large banner, which read:

_GILDEROY LOCKHART_

_will be signing copies of his autobiography_

_MAGICAL ME_

_today 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m._

Evanna recognized the name as the prestigious wizarding author, who wrote almost every book on their booklists. She had seen his picture on one of Mrs. Weasley's books, and he had looked _incredibly_ vain. It was always a bad sign if you could deduce that by a photograph. But Evanna remembered to never _ever_ judge a book by its cover (case in point: Professor Quirrell), so she decided at once that she would give him a chance.

"Could you get down now?" George asked in annoyance.

Evanna complied, hopping off of his back and landing softly beside him. "Come on, we better get inside and find your parents," she said, gesturing for Fred, George, Ron, and Hermione to follow.

Squeezing through the crowds, the group found Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were near where Gilderoy Lockhart was about to appear. Evanna watched as a man with wavy blond hair and bright blue eyes (but not nearly a nice as George's blue eyes, _not that Evanna noticed or anything!_ ) came onto the stage, holding up a copy of his book, smiling and winking in time with his picture on the book. Evanna tried not to categorize him as vain. _You haven't even gotten to know him_ , she told herself, _he could be a really very pleasant person . . ._

As a cameraman shoved past her rudely, Gilderoy Lockhart noticed her. Or perhaps he just noticed her scar, because he exclaimed, "It can't be Evanna Potter?"

In a desperate attempt to hide herself, Evanna darted behind Fred and George. This didn't seem to be enough though, because the crowd had parted like the Red Sea, letting Lockhart reach between the twins and pull her roughly to the front with him. Evanna shot her friends a look that screamed, "Help me! SOS!" but none of them could do anything, for the crowd moved right back together and the rude cameraman kept pushing in front of them for a better shot.

"Smile, Evanna! We'll definitely make the front page!" Lockhart hissed through his teeth, arm around Evanna, pinning her to his side. Evanna gave an extremely forced smile, hoping that he would let her go soon, but no sooner had the pictures ended, did he start making a speech, still keeping Evanna by his side.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly, waving for quiet. "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

"When young Evanna here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, she only wanted to buy my autobiography — which I shall be happy to present her now, free of charge — " The crowd applauded. "She had _no idea_ ," Lockhart continued, "that she would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me_. She and her schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

Lockhart shoved all of his books into Evanna's hands, leaving her to stagger off of the stage, trying to support the weight of the many books she had been burdened with. Spotting Ginny, holding her new cauldron, Evanna went over to her. "Here, take them," Evanna said, "I'll buy my own — no really, it's fine — "

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?"

Evanna let out a groan, turning around to face Draco Malfoy. One might say that he was her arch nemesis, with the way the two went at it.

" _Famous_ Evanna Potter," Malfoy sneered, adopting a face very similar to Snape. "Can't even go into a _bookshop_ without making the front page."

"Leave her alone!" Ginny snapped, glaring up at Malfoy.

Malfoy made a face like he was going to say something very nasty to the young girl, but stopped himself as Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Mr. Weasley appeared. He seemed to know when he was outnumbered.

"Shall we go outside?" Mr. Weasley asked, unawares to what might've started a few moments ago. Unfortunately, it seemed as if something entirely different was going to start now.

"Well, well, well — Arthur Weasley."

Mr. Malfoy had just come up, putting his hand on Malfoy's shoulder. He gave Mr. Weasley a smirk.

"Lucius," said Mr. Weasley, nodding coldly.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," said Mr. Malfoy. "All those raids . . . I hope they're paying you overtime?"

Reaching into Ginny's cauldron, he extracted a very old, very battered copy of _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_. Evanna hadn't even noticed it wedged between all of the bright, new Lockhart books that she had just presented Ginny with.

"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy said. "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

It seemed that Mr. Malfoy had gone too far. Mr. Weasley had tackled Mr. Malfoy to the ground, and the two of them seemed to forget that they possessed wands and started a fist fight on the floor of Flourish and Blotts. Fred and George were excitedly yelling, "Get him, Dad!"

The two men rolled around on the floor, hitting each other with their fists and books, while the crowd that had previously been ogling at Gilderoy gathered around. Mrs. Weasley was watching in complete horror, while Evanna heard Lockhart asking the cameraman to be sure to include this fight in the paper. Evanna rolled her eyes; screw giving him a chance, this guy was as egotistical as you could get.

Finally, Hagrid entered, ripping the two grown men apart. Mr. Malfoy was still holding Ginny's Transfiguration book, which he now thrust towards her. Evanna blinked, almost positive that she could see a second book underneath the battered Transfiguration book . . .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Ginny, I didn't know you had a diary!"

Ginny snapped the small leather book closed, looking frightfully over at Evanna. Evanna held her hands up in surrender. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you! Just observing . . ."

Ginny carefully opened the diary again and continued writing. She couldn't let Evanna know that this diary wasn't truthfully hers. The name in the front was T.M. Riddle, and that was definitely _not_ Ginevra Molly Weasley. But it had been in her cauldron, so she could only assume that it had been in the secondhand bookshop where she had received her Transfiguration book. Mum must've bought it without her noticing.

Ginny didn't mind of course; she had never owned a diary and it might be fun. She had only written one entry, about how her summer had been so far. But she couldn't find it anywhere in the book! So she was rewriting it, thinking that she must've just thought about writing the entry and hadn't really written it yet.

Evanna watched Ginny write from across the room. She had never seen the girl writing in a diary before, but perhaps she had bought it at their outing to Diagon Alley. _Yes, she must've_ , Evanna scolded herself, _stop making everything so suspicious!_ But there had been that small book that she was almost sure Mr. Malfoy had slipped in Ginny's cauldron . . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Did you find the quote? Review and tell me (and tell me your house too)! And don't forget to add me on Pottermore :P
> 
> Please Review, if you found the quote or not! ~Jayce


	16. Cars Taking Flight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 16: Cars Taking Flight
> 
> A/N: I'm relatively happy with this chapter. It was fun to write :) Thank you to all those who reviewed, including all those guests who I couldn't respond to. Thank you all for reading and have a lovely day!

How they ever managed to get to the train station on time was a mystery to Evanna. It seemed that each Weasley had decided to leave something important behind, so as they needed to run back in and grab it. George had forgotten his fireworks, Fred had forgotten his broom, and Ginny had forgotten her diary. By the time they had actually reached the station, there was a little bit less than five minutes to get through the barrier.

Percy went through the barrier first, followed by Mr. Weasley, the twins, and Mrs. Weasley, holding tight to Ginny's hand. Ron glanced at the clock worriedly. "We've barely got a minute," he muttered. "Let's go together, come on."

Evanna and Ron both took off at a run towards the barrier. Evanna felt confident; this was much more comfortable than Floo Powder. But her confidence shattered as the two of them collided the barrier. The impact caused them to fly backwards through the air, their trunks crashing to the ground, and Hedwig screeching as her cage rolled around the feet of some very confused Muggles. Evanna, in a panic, jumped up and pressed her hands against the stone wall. It was now completely solid.

"Ouch," she muttered, realizing that she had a sharp pain in her left foot. She must've twisted her ankle when she fell. Ron darted over to help support her, but she shook her head, motioning to their overturned trolleys and scattered possessions. She merely leaned against the solid barrier, resting her foot in hopes of the pain going away, while Ron wordlessly began to replace things on their trolleys.

"The train's left by now," Ron whispered, as he rolled Evanna's trolley to her, complete with a very miffed Hedwig on top. "What do we do?" He suddenly gave her an alarmed look. "If we can't get in, what if Mum and Dad can't get back out?"

Evanna swallowed hard, trying to come up with a solution. "Maybe it'll open again, or maybe they can open it with magic, they're allowed to use magic. We should just go wait for them by the car — "

"Evanna!"

Evanna jumped at Ron's sudden exclamation. "W-what?"

"The car! Come on!"

Evanna followed Ron with a horrible feeling. Once they had reached the old blue Ford Anglia (it took longer than Ron would've liked, with Evanna's sprained ankle and all), Ron quickly began packing their trunks inside.

" _No_!" Evanna shouted. "If you're thinking what I think you're thinking — "

"Come on, I'll use magic to start it up — we're allowed to in emergencies according to law whatever — and we'll get to Hogwarts and — "

"Why not just send a letter to them?" Evanna asked. "They'll send someone to get us, we won't be doing anything wrong — "

"We're _not_ doing anything wrong!" Ron argued. "Come on, I'm going, whether you come or not!"

Evanna let out a scared squeak. "You — you're _ditching_ me?! No, no, don't leave me here!"

"Then come on," Ron groaned exasperatedly. "We had better get going if we want to catch up to the train!"

Evanna bit her lip, glanced around the parking lot, and clambered into the shotgun seat of the car. As Ron started the car up, Evanna grabbed out a quill and parchment, jotting down a quick note. "Here, Hedwig, you go give this to the first teacher you see at Hogwarts," Evanna said quietly, giving the folded parchment to the snowy owl, who clamped it in her beak. "Feel free to just hang around there once you arrive." The owl gave a look of understanding and flew off out the car's window, obviously glad to be free of her cage.

Ron looked pleased as the car's engine began to whir. "All right. Hogwarts, here we come!" He pressed a button, and the whole car (interior and exterior) rippled into complete transparency. Even Ron and Evanna had disappeared from sight, which was a strange thing to witness (hopefully nobody besides the two of them did witness it).

Once the car began to float upwards, Evanna began to get a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. They were _so_ dead for this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione frowned, checking every compartment as she walked past. Where were Ron and Evanna? They should've been here!

She slid open a compartment door, with a small knock. "Hello Seamus. Dean. Neville. Have any of you seen Ron or Evanna?"

"Can't say we have," Seamus answered. "Sorry, Hermione."

"It's fine," Hermione assured him. "Thank you anyways."

She continued along, occasionally popping her head into compartments to ask. Parvati and Lavender hadn't seen either of them, but it seemed that their joke about starting up the rumour mill right away hadn't been as much of a joke as Hermione had thought. It seemed that now, nearly everyone she talked to had heard something different.

"They were abducted by aliens," one Ravenclaw girl said.

"I heard that they were beat up by Slytherins so bad that now they're in St. Mungo's," a Hufflepuff boy said.

"Maybe they're flying to Hogwarts on brooms," an older Gryffindor boy (Oliver Wood, Hermione thought was his name) said, adding, "I hope so, Evanna should get as much practice time in as she can."

Hermione ignored all the false information (including one completely ludicrous idea that they had taken a flying car) and paused by Fred and George's compartment. Did she dare?

Hermione slid open the door, greeted each boy curtly. "Frederick. George."

Fred frowned; he really hated her using his full name. So he retaliated with a, "What is it, Granger?" knowing that she hated him addressing her by her last name.

Hermione rolled her eyes at Fred's use of her surname. "Have either of you seen Ron or Evanna? I can't find them anywhere."

Now George frowned; hadn't those two followed Mum and Ginny through the barrier? But as he thought about it, he realized that none of them had actually seen those two come out of the barrier or get on the train with everyone else. Great, now he was worrying too. "I'm sure they're somewhere," he said, more confidently than he felt. "Do you want to sit with us instead?"

Hermione hesitated but, as Evanna and Ron seemed to be winning this game of Hide and Seek, she agreed, sitting next to Fred with a small smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Professor Minerva McGonagall was surprised to see a snowy owl flying towards her as she walked briskly across the Entrance Hall. She recognized the bird of course; as far as she knew, Evanna Potter was one of the select few with that breed of owl. Allowing Hedwig to perch on her outstretched arm, she gave the bird a grateful pat before taking the folded note from her beak. The owl obviously wasn't expecting a reply, as she flew of for the owlery.

Minerva unfolded the letter to see Evanna's messy cursive, seeming even more so than usual, if that was possible. She had obviously written the letter in a rush.

_Dear Mr/Miss/Mrs Professor Person,_ (Minerva chuckled; Evanna really was quite a darling)

_For some unknown and highly mysterious reason, the barrier leading to platform nine and three quarters has closed, locking me and my friend, Ron Weasley, out. I am sending this to let you know that it was not my idea whatsoever to arrive like this, it was all my idiotic best friend. I wouldn't have even gone with him, had he not threatened to leave me alone on the platform did I not accompany him._

_So, we are in a flying car (a Ford Anglia, to be more specific) and heading to Hogwarts. I know that this is definitely against school rules (or will be in the future) and I just want to clarify that it was all Ron's stupid idea and I had nothing to do with it._

_Please don't expel us,_

_Evanna Potter_

Minerva frowned, rereading the letter. A flying car? She could only hope that this was a joke . . . But, in case it wasn't . . .

Minerva walked quickly into the Great Hall, where a number of the staff had been congregating. "Albus," she called. The man in question looked up at her calmly. "Albus, I think you should see this." She held out the letter to him.

His eyes scanned the page, and he merely smiled. "Ah yes, make sure that you're ready to meet them at the feast. I suspect that they will arrive late."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I spy something . . . White," Evanna said boredly, getting a strange look from Ron.

The duo had been sitting in this car for ages and it was getting horribly boring. Despite Ron's reassurances that they must be close to Hogwarts by now, Evanna still felt bored and anxious. She didn't want to get in trouble, but she really would rather have a million detentions than go back to the Dursleys. If they got expelled, that would pretty much kill her.

"Do you give up?" Evanna asked in the same toneless manner. "It's this endless sea of clouds below us. Yay, now it's your turn."

"I don't get it," Ron said, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

The car suddenly gave an unpleasant jolt. Evanna and Ron stared at each other wide-eyed. The engine was beginning to whine. The sky was starting to darken, and soon it was dotted with stars. Evanna pretended that she couldn't hear the whining engine as she gazed around at the twinkling stars. This proved a very difficult feat, as she was also trying not to worry that they were going to crash land at any second.

"There it is!"

Evanna breathed out a sigh of relief as the silhouette of a large castle on a high cliff, with many towers and turrets came into view. It was the light at the end of the tunnel. They made it. Nothing could go wrong now, right?

The car gave a sickening shudder. It was losing speed. The whining and groaning became increasingly louder. Evanna knew what was happening and she didn't like it. She gripped her seat for dear life as the engine gave a final cough and died.

Falling into a nosedive towards the castle wall, Evanna squeezed her eyes shut, hoping for some miracle. She could hear Ron yell, she could feel the car turn . . . She didn't dare open her eyes, and she tried to keep her breathing steady, which was terribly hard to do when one felt like they were on a motion simulator, yet this was real life and they might crash at any moment.

Just when she dared open one eyelid, both eyes popped open in horror and she screamed, "WATCH OUT FOR THAT TREE!" pointing unnecessarily at the large tree ahead of them.

The car slammed into its thick trunk, and Ron and Evanna were both thrown forwards by the force of the impact, their seatbelts catching them. Evanna stared ahead unblinkingly for a few seconds, and Ron frantically thought she had died. But she finally said, " _I hate you_ ," and Ron let out a breath he hadn't realized that he had been holding.

"Well . . . We're alive," Ron said, trying to sound optimistic. But he abandoned all efforts at cheerfulness when he saw a thin strip of wood on the floor of the car. Grabbing it up, he moaned, "My wand!" It had broken in half, held together by mere splinters.

Evanna tried to say something helpful, but her words were drowned when there was a sudden impact at the side of the car, sending her falling sideways into Ron. At the same moment, an equally heavy blow hit the roof, making it cave in slightly so that the two second-years had to bow their heads to avoid hitting the ceiling. Then, a thick tree branch punched purposefully through the windshield, right in between Ron and Evanna's head's. Exchanging terrified looks, they both realized what was happening, even if they didn't want to believe it.

The tree which they had crashed into was attacking them.

The branches were relentlessly beating the car, and every time they attempted to escape, the tree would just hit them. Now, Evanna had a nasty bump on her head and numerous cuts, and Ron had a black eye and various bruises. Evanna was beginning to lose hope, but then she felt the car vibrating — the engine had restarted.

" _Reverse_!" Evanna squealed, narrowly avoided a particularly thick branch that had aimed a jab to her head. The car shot backwards of its own accord, avoiding the tree's heavy branched which were still trying to club it. The car stopped a fair ways away from the vicious tree.

Evanna didn't have time to catch her breath, as the car seemed to have had enough of the two young passengers. It ejected both of them onto the grass, spitting their trunks out with Hedwig's empty cage. Evanna watched it drive angrily into the Forbidden Forest, with a final snort from its exhaust.

"Can you _believe_ our luck?" Ron groaned. "Of all the trees we could've hit, we had to get one that hits back. Dad's going to kill me for losing his car!"

Evanna didn't seem to be listening to him, though she did hit him. "You _stupid_ — ! You _idiot_ — ! You _complete and utter_ — !" She couldn't seem to find the right words to explain her fury, so she settled with letting out an exasperated groan and stomped towards the school, pulling her trunk and Hedwig's empty cage along behind her, faster than anyone with a sprained ankle should be able to go.

"Hey, hey, Evanna, wait!" Ron called after her, grabbing his trunk and his pet rat, Scabbers, and running after his friend.

Evanna didn't stop until she had reached the window outside the Great Hall. Peering inside, she could see Professor McGonagall placing a patched old hat on a stool in front of a crowd of skittish looking first-years. Evanna remembered the Sorting Hat well. Despite its aged look, this hat was how every student at Hogwarts was placed into the house that was most fit for them. Glancing around the staff table, Evanna noted that two spots were empty. One was for Professor McGonagall, who was just placing the Sorting Hat on a very small boy's head, and the other —

"Where's Snape?" Ron asked, who had appeared beside Evanna, also examining the staff.

Evanna shrugged, turning around to head inside. But what she saw behind them made the colour drain from her face.

"Maybe he's ill!" Ron said hopefully, his face brightening. "Or maybe he's left because he missed the DADA job again!"

"Ron . . ." Evanna whimpered, tugging on the ginger's sleeve.

"Or maybe he was sacked!" Ron said gleefully. "I mean, who likes the old — "

"Or maybe," Snape interrupted coldly from behind Ron, "he's waiting to hear why you two didn't arrive on the school train."

Ron spun around, staring at the black-clad teacher. He was giving Ron and Evanna an overjoyed smile. Ron gulped, knowing that they must be in trouble, otherwise Snape wouldn't be smiling so joyously. Nothing pleased the Potions master more than punishing students who stepped out of line, and knowing his grudge against Evanna, he must be ecstatic.

"Professor," Evanna began, "didn't anyone get my letter?"

"I believe that Professor McGonagall did receive it, yes."

"Then can't she — ?"

" _Silence_ ," Snape hissed, and Evanna snapped her mouth shut. "Follow me," said Snape, and neither student objected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Did you like the Hermione bit and the Prof. McGonagall bit? They were fun to write :)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	17. Punishments

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 17: Punishments
> 
> A/N: Ah yes, I'm very happy with this story! But my friend asked me to post this on Archive of our Own too, and I don't know if I should . . . What do you guys think? (

Snape's office was cold and dark. The walls were lined with jars that were filled with slimy things which Evanna couldn't quite make out in the shadows. She got the feeling she wouldn't want to know what they were either. She and Ron sat down in front of Snape's desk, shivering so much that it was a wonder Snape could ignore them. Evanna wished he would start a fire in the cobwebbed fireplace.

"So," Snape said softly, "the train isn't good enough for the famous Evanna Potter and her faithful sidekick, Weasley. Wanted to arrive with a _bang_ , did we?"

Evanna's shoulders drooped at how Snape made her sound so vain, while Ron looked like he was suppressing the urge to punch the greasy-haired teacher in the nose.

"Professor," Evanna began, "please let us explain — "

"Oh, and what would you like to explain?" Snape sneered, causing Evanna to shrink back timidly. "How you hadn't meant to get caught? How you wanted to flaunt your superiority to all of us lesser beings?"

"Hey! Evanna's not the narcissist that you make her out to be!" Ron shouted, unable to bear this bullying. "It was _my_ idea, I dragged her along! She hadn't even wanted to come with me — "

"Are you saying that you are the only one who should be expelled?" Snape asked curiously.

Ron gave a fierce nod, even as Evanna shook her head, not wanting him to take all of the blame.

"Unfortunately, she still decided to join you in your flying car, did she not?"

The two redheads goggled at Snape, flummoxed. How did he know about the car?

Snape pulled out an edition of the Evening Prophet. "You were seen," he hissed, showing them the headline: FLYING FORD ANGLIA MYSTIFIES MUGGLES. He began to read aloud: "Two Muggles in London, convinced they saw an old car flying over the Post Office tower . . . at noon in Norfolk, Mrs. Hetty Bayliss, while hanging out her washing . . . Mr. Angus Fleet, of Peebles, reported to police . . . Six or seven Muggles in all. I believe your father works in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office?" he said, looking up at Ron and smiling still more nastily. "Dear, dear . . . his own son . . ."

Evanna and Ron shared a nervous look, wondering what would happen if Snape knew that it had actually been Ron's father who had enchanted the car.

"You two should be expelled!" Snape said through gritted teeth, his face inches away from Evanna's.

"However, their fate does not rest in your hands, Severus."

Professor McGonagall entered the room, looking at them disapprovingly. She waved her wand and the fireplace erupted with flames, warming the room greatly. Snape didn't seem to like the new warmth and shied away from the fire.

"I received your letter, Potter," Professor McGonagall said, "but if you two could provide more information, that would be appreciated."

Ron launched into a recollection of the day's events, with Evanna adding comments here and there, starting from when the barrier refused them entry, to when they had arrived at Hogwarts. About halfway through, Professor Dumbledore had entered and also wanted an explanation, so Ron had to start again. He made sure to include that Evanna hadn't been at all responsible, and that if anyone deserved to be expelled, it was him. Evanna admired his selflessness, and hoped that the teachers did too.

"So I guess I'll go get my stuff then," Ron finished, with a slight gloominess to his voice.

"And why would you do that, Weasley?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"I'm being expelled, aren't I?" Ron asked, looking at each professor in shock.

"Not today, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore said. "But you both must understand the seriousness of what you've done. I'll be writing to both of your families at once. But if either of you do anything like this again, I will have no choice but to expel you, understood?" Dumbledore looked at each second-year in the eyes seriously, watching them nod. Then, he smiled, clapping his hands together. "Good! I will leave you in Professor McGonagall's capable hands. Come, Severus, there is a delicious tart that you must sample . . ."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ron and Evanna returned to Gryffindor tower with nothing but a detention and a new spring in their step. Neither of them had been expelled! Ron felt that it was completely miraculous that he wasn't, when the teachers had fully known that it was his idea and fault.

As they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Hermione bustled up to them. " _There_ you are! I was looking for you _everywhere_ on the train — the most _bizarre_ rumours have been flying around — someone said you'd been _expelled_ for arriving in a _flying car_!" Hermione snorted to show how ridiculous she thought that was. But when neither of her friends answered, she gasped, "Is it _true_?"

"Well, neither of us were expelled," Evanna said, cheerfully.

"But a flying — ?!"

"Hey, do you know the password?" Ron asked, obviously trying to avoid a lecture.

"Wattlebird," Hermione said, "but — !"

As soon as the portrait hole was opened, they were met with a storm of applause. Evanna felt hands grab her, pulling her into the room. The same thing happened to Ron, leaving Hermione to scramble in after them. It seemed like the whole Gryffindor house had been awaiting their return, to congratulate them. Evanna was swarmed by people, saying how amazing she was. Evanna had kindly directed them all to Ron, saying honestly that the whole thing had been his idea. He went beet red and gladly accepted the thumps on the back and compliments.

Evanna smiled as she passed by Fred and George on her way to her dormitory. "Why didn't you two bring us along?" they complained, and Evanna just rolled her eyes.

The praise didn't stop once inside her dorm though. Parvati and Lavender thought she was brilliant, and they both listened intently as she recalled the adventure. Hermione listened too, albeit reprovingly. It suddenly seemed more of an exciting journey than a near-expulsion endangerment. Evanna couldn't help but smile, wondering what new adventure might await them the next day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna sat between Ron and Hermione at breakfast the next morning, who were in the middle of a heated argument. Evanna had told Hermione countless times that Ron wasn't really to be blamed for their dramatic arrival, considering they wouldn't have arrived in such a way had the barrier let them through, but Hermione wouldn't hear any of it. She continuously vented to Ron about how he should've listened to Evanna's advice about waiting. Ron, meanwhile, thought that Hermione was siding with Evanna, even though Evanna had repeated again and again that she wasn't taking sides, and was just as enraged at her and she was at him. So Evanna sat between them, in a weak attempt to stop their squabbling. Needless to say, it had no effect.

"Honestly, Ronald, you are so irresponsible — !"

"You're just siding with Evanna because she's a girl too — !"

Evanna covered her ears, but could still hear her friends arguing without pause. She finally resorted to moving a few seats down, to sit beside the Weasley twins.

"Still fighting?" George asked.

Evanna nodded hopelessly.

"They'll probably forget about it within an hour," Fred said nonchalantly, waving his spoonful of porridge haphazardly to emphasize his point. Evanna glared at him as some flew off the spoon and onto her face. George smothered his laughter, then used his napkin to wipe Evanna's face.

Evanna rolled her eyes, but still said, "Thanks."

A few seconds later, an owl flew into the side of Fred's head, holding a red envelope in his beak. Fred's face went white when he took to letter, then gave a laugh of relief when he saw that it had Ron's name written on it. He passed the now-unconscious owl to George (who muttered, "Why do we have such a dumb owl? Come on, Errol, wake up!") and went over, dropping the red envelope on Ron's lap. Now it was Ron's face that went white, and he seemed to be having a low discussion with his older brother.

"I don't get it, what's the matter with that letter?" Evanna asked George, who had put Errol on the table.

"That, dear Evanna, is a Howler," George smirked. "Just watch ickle Ronniekins opens it."

Ron shakily opened the red envelope, just as Fred sat back down, and Evanna, at first, thought that it had exploded. But she soon recognized it as the voice of Mrs. Weasley, magnified a hundred times its normal size.

"RONALD WEASLEY!" she yelled at the youngest Weasley son, causing him to cower in his seat. "HOW _DARE_ YOU STEAL THAT CAR! I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE —

"— LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND EVANNA COULD BOTH HAVE DIED —

"— ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED — YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME! We don't blame you of course, Evanna. Oh, and Ginny dear, congratulations on making Gryffindor, your father and I are so proud."

Evanna and Ginny exchanged looks across the table; how had they been dragged into this?

Ron's Howler burst into flames, ashes scattering across his plate of eggs. Evanna watched in exasperation as Hermione hit him on the head with her copy of _Voyages with Vampires_ , and a new fight broke out between the two.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The fighting didn't stop as the trio walked to the greenhouses for double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Evanna was now in a foul mood, as usually happens when one is listening to one's friends bickering to no end, and it didn't improve when she saw Professor Sprout come around the corner accompanied by Gilderoy Lockhart. She did a spot on impression of Professor McGonagall when he announced that he had been showing Professor Sprout how to properly treat a Whomping Willow (as if he had ever seen one in his life!) and her lips thinned even more when he asked if he could speak to her alone for a few minutes.

"Evanna," he sighed, once the class had filed into greenhouse three. "Evanna, Evanna, Evanna. When I heard — well, of course, it was all my fault. Could have kicked myself."

Evanna was just about to ask exactly _what_ he was going on about (her being very short tempered at the moment), when he answered her unasked question.

"Don't know when I've been more shocked. Flying a car to Hogwarts! Well, of course, I knew at once why you'd done it. Stood out a mile. Evanna, Evanna, _Evanna_.

"Gave you a taste for publicity, didn't I? Gave you the _bug_. You got onto the front page of the paper with me and you couldn't wait to do it again."

Evanna just gave Lockhart an unamused look as he continued vigorously, flashing her a large smile.

"Evanna, Evanna, Evanna, I _understand_. Natural to want a bit more once you've had that first taste — and I blame myself for giving you that, because it was bound to go to your head — but see here, young lady, you can't start _flying cars_ to try and get yourself noticed. Just calm down, all right? Plenty of time for all that when you're older. Yes, yes, I know what you're thinking! 'It's all right for him, he's an internationally famous wizard already!' But when I was twelve, I was just as much of a nobody as you are now. In fact, I'd say I was even _more_ of a nobody! I mean, a few people have heard of you, haven't they? All that business with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!"

"You mean Voldemort?" Evanna asked innocently. Lockhart cringed, but continued as if she hadn't said anything.

"I know, I know — it's not quite as good as winning _Witch Weekly's_ Most-Charming-Smile Award five times in a row, as I have — but it's a _start_ , Evanna, it's a _start_." He gave her a jolly wink before striding off towards the castle.

Evanna blinked, wondering if it were possible to be that _vain_ and still be revered by so many. Yet, there was living proof, his turquoise robes billowing behind him as he walked into the school. She shook off the thought that now others might compare her to _him_ and hurried into greenhouse three.

The first thing she noticed was that there were about twenty pairs of different coloured earmuffs lying on a bench in front of Professor Sprout. The next thing she noticed was that Ron and Hermione had taken places on opposite ends of the room. Evanna went to go stand beside a kind-looking Hufflepuff boy with curly hair.

"We'll be repotting Mandrakes today. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?" Professor Sprout asked.

As per usual, Hermione's hand was the first in the air. "Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative. It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state."

"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," said Professor Sprout. "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"

"The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it," Hermione said promptly.

Evanna heard Ron mutter a very rude comment about Hermione, which sounded suspiciously like, "effing know-it-all."

"Precisely. Take another ten points," said Professor Sprout. "Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young." She gestured a row of deep trays with a hundred or so tufty little plants, purplish green in color, growing there in rows. "Everyone take a pair of earmuffs, put them on, and do _not_ take them off until I give the thumbs-up!"

Evanna ended up with a pair that were green, which she secured over her ears. She watched as Professor Sprout put on a pink, fluffy pair of earmuffs, rolled up her sleeves, and pulled one of the tufty plants from the dirt.

Instead of roots, as Evanna had expected, a small, muddy, and extremely ugly baby popped out of the earth. The leaves were growing right out of his head. He had pale green, mottled skin, and was clearly bawling at the top of his lungs.

Professor Sprout took a large plant pot from under the table and plunged the Mandrake into it, burying him in dark, damp compost until only the tufted leaves were visible. Professor Sprout dusted off her hands, gave them all the thumbs-up, and removed her own earmuffs.

"As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill yet," she said calmly. "However, they will knock you out for several hours, and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up.

"Four to a tray — there is a large supply of pots here — compost in the sacks over there — and be careful of the Venomous Tentacula, it's teething."

Evanna found herself sharing a tray with the curly-haired Hufflepuff who she had stood beside, and fellow Gryffindors, Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan. The Hufflepuff introduced himself as Justin Finch-Fletchley, a Muggle-born who liked Lockhart too much for Evanna's taste, but he was actually quite nice.

They didn't have much time to chat, as they soon needed to don their earmuffs. Evanna did notice, however, that both Ron and Hermione were shooting daggers at each other. It was becoming very irritating, so Evanna made a resolve. She decided that she would speak to neither Ron nor Hermione until they put their differences behind them. She just hoped that it would work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So what do you think of Evanna's plan to give Ron and Hermione the silent treatment? Do you think it'll work?
> 
> Please review! :) ~Jayce


	18. The Fights that Break us Apart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 18: The Fights that Break us Apart
> 
> A/N: I ended up deciding to post it on AO3 too. So it's under the same name (The Girl Who Lived) and the same username (CupcakeOfAwesomeness). I'll be updating it slower than this one though. Anyways, I do not own the song, _Stay Awake_ (from Disney's _Mary Poppins_ ) so please don't sue me. :) Happy reading.

Ron had noticed that Evanna wasn't speaking to them before Hermione had. He sat next to her in Transfiguration, where they were hopelessly trying to turn beetles into buttons. Evanna did not look at Ron as she continuously pointed her wand at her beetle, failing to make any change to it. Ron's wand, which was now held together with some spellotape, was malfunctioning horribly. It kept emitting thick smoke.

After he squished his beetle accidentally (not being able to see through the smoke), he noticed Evanna's silence. "Evanna, what's wrong?" he asked, looking over at his friend.

She merely flipped her dark red braid over her shoulder, waving her wand at her beetle yet again. Ron frowned, watching her attempt in vain to transfigure her beetle into a button, wondering what could possibly be the matter. She was generally very vocal with him and Hermione, being best friends and all.

After the lesson, Evanna went to catch up with Fred and George, and Ron went to Hermione. "Hey, Hermione! Have you noticed anything wrong with Evanna lately? She won't speak to me," Ron said.

"Sounds like a smart plan," Hermione huffed, turning away from Ron. "The only thing I noticed about Evanna was that she decided to sit with _you_ and coincidentally did not produce any buttons." Hermione held out her perfect coat buttons. "Perhaps it had to do with the overexposure to your idiocy?"

"At least I'm not some bullying smart aleck!" Ron retorted, and the quarreling began again.

Evanna, meanwhile, was sitting with Fred and George, eating lunch and discussing prank ideas. "There should be something that will force the person who eats it to say what they like about people," Evanna was saying, "like a Compliment Candy. There could be another one, which does the opposite, where they'd say everything they don't like about people, like an Insult Sweet."

"Brilliant!" Fred exclaimed, as he jotted the ideas down in a pocket-sized notebook. They kept all of their prank ideas in there and all the ideas for their future joke shop.

"I just wish I had a Compliment Candy for Ron and Hermione," Evanna sighed, resting her cheek on her fist.

"So they're _still_ going at it?" George asked, with mild surprise.

"Constantly," Evanna replied. "I've actually resorted to giving them both the _silent treatment_ until they make up — oh no, here they come!"

Ron and Hermione sat down opposite the twins and Evanna, who had shut her mouth in a thin line as soon as they had come into view. "Evanna, tell Hermione that I'm not responsible for you not making any buttons!" Ron demanded angrily, glaring at the bushy-haired girl.

When Evanna said nothing, Hermione said, "She just doesn't want to tell you the truth!"

"Actually," George said, grabbing both twelve-year-olds' attention, "she's refusing to talk to either of you until you make up."

"That's ridiculous!" Hermione snapped.

"But it's true," Fred said. "She told us herself."

"I am not apologizing to _her_!"

"I am not apologizing to _him_!"

"Then I guess you're stuck with Silent Evanna," the twins said in unison.

Ron and Hermione exchanged looks. Surely Evanna would forget about this whole silent treatment soon, right?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna sat on a stone wall in the courtyard of Hogwarts, talking with Fred and George. She was just laughing about an idea of theirs (Ton-Tongue Toffee) when she realized that a very small first-year was staring at her, clutching a Muggle camera (not unlike the one Evanna owned but barely used, though his had a large flash). He went red when he saw that she had noticed him, and he timidly came up to her.

"All right, Evanna? I'm — I'm Colin Creevey," he said breathlessly, taking a tentative step forward. "I'm in Gryffindor, too. D'you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?" he said, raising the camera hopefully.

"A picture?" Evanna repeated, looking at his camera as if she didn't trust it.

"So I can prove I've met you," said Colin Creevey eagerly, edging further forward. "I know all about you. Everyone's told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still got a lightning scar on your forehead and a boy in my dormitory said if I develop the film in the right potion, the pictures'll _move_." Colin finally drew breath. The only other person Evanna had known to talk so much and so fast without breathing was Hermione.

Colin continued, "It's _amazing_ here, isn't it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts. My dad's a milkman, he couldn't believe it either. So I'm taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it'd be really good if I had one of you maybe one of your friends could take it and I could stand next to you? And then, could you sign it?"

Fred and George exchanged grins; the idea of Evanna giving out signed photos! But just as quickly, they frowned when a new voice joined the conversation.

" _Signed photos_? You're giving out _signed photos_ , Potter?"

Draco Malfoy walked up, along with his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, on either side of him, as if acting as his bodyguards. All of them were smirking evilly at Evanna.

"Everyone line up! Evanna Potter's giving out signed photos!" Malfoy announced to the whole courtyard. Only Crabbe and Goyle laughed, much to Malfoy's disappointment.

"I notice that nobody thought that was very funny," Evanna said dryly.

"You're just jealous," Colin added, which Evanna thought was quite brave, considering that he was about the width of Crabbe's neck.

" _Jealous_?" Malfoy said incredulously. "I don't want any dark wizards ripping open my head, thanks. There's nothing special about have an appalling scar across your forehead!"

George was looking very angry at this point; how Evanna could tolerate this sort of bullying, he didn't know. "Just shut your mouth, Malfoy," he said through gritted teeth, fists clenched.

Malfoy looked amused that this boy, no matter what year he was in, would dare threaten him. He nodded to Crabbe and Goyle to be ready to attack if need be, then he said, "Careful, Weasley, or your mummy will send you what she sent your baby brother. Actually," Malfoy turned to Colin and Evanna, "I think you should give both these Weasleys a signed photo, then maybe they could buy a — "

But what they could buy, they never found out. Both Fred and George had charged at Malfoy, so he had cowered behind Crabbe and Goyle, who looked ready to take the two fourth-years on, but then Gilderoy Lockhart had come around the corner, and everything stopped.

"What's all this? Who's giving out signed photos?" Lockhart's eyes fell onto Evanna and he flung an arm around her shoulders jovially. "Shouldn't have asked! We meet again, Evanna!"

Evanna glared at Lockhart, then at Malfoy, who smirked back at her, beckoned to Crabbe and Goyle, and slipped into the crowd unnoticed by the teacher. (But really, what did Lockhart notice other than himself?)

After Lockhart had convinced Colin to take a double photo of Evanna and himself ( _of course_ ), he had the _audacity_ to suggest that this made _Evanna_ look bigheaded! Seething, Evanna said goodbye to the twins and reluctantly followed Lockhart into his classroom.

Evanna made sure to seat herself as far from Ron or Hermione as possible, ending up beside Lavender Brown. She pulled out all of her Lockhart books, glared at them all (she was _so_ going to graffiti these later), then she glared up at the real Lockhart, much to the amusement of Lavender (who hadn't been witness to any of Evanna's encounters with Lockhart so far).

Lockhart picked up Neville Longbottom's copy of _Travels with Trolls_. "Me," he said, pointing at it and winking along with the picture of him on the cover. "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of _Witch Weekly's_ Most-Charming-Smile Award — but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by _smiling_ at her!"

He waited for them to laugh; a few people smiled weakly.

"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books — well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about — just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in — "

When he had handed out the test papers he returned to the front of the class and said, "You have thirty minutes — start — _now_!"

Evanna glanced down at her sheet, and groaned out loud. How could anyone be so impossibly narcissistic?! The questions were all about Lockhart, starting with his favourite colour and ending with when his birthday was and what his ideal gift would be. Evanna simply wrote _"Vain," "Arrogant," "Egotistical,"_ or _"Conceited"_ for each one, not caring what the real answers might be.

After their time was up, Lockhart collected all of their tests and began reading through them. Upon reaching Evanna's, his wide smile faltered. He mouthed the four words over and over, beginning to look horrified. Evanna smirked at his reaction. He finally regained his smile, moving onto the next paper without making any comments on Evanna's, but he looked somewhat less full of himself.

After rewarding Hermione ten points for being to only one who got everything correct (Evanna heard Ron make a very rude comment, much to her annoyance), Lockhart moved over to a cage covered by a sheet. Evanna only half-listened to him speak, watching boredly as he dramatically wiped off the sheet to reveal —

"Cornish Pixies?" Seamus Finnegan asked with a laugh.

" _Freshly caught Cornish Pixies_!" Lockhart corrected, then he locked eyes with Evanna before opening the cage door. "Let's see what you make of them."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't _believe_ he made us clean up his mess!"

"He just wanted to give us a hands-on experience!"

"He had no clue what he was doing!"

"Rubbish, you've read all the amazing things he's done!"

"He _says_ he's done!"

Evanna still refused to speak to Ron or Hermione as they left Lockhart's classroom. She really had to side with Ron though; Lockhart was _definitely_ incompetent. He had let loose all the Cornish Pixies, leaving the three of them to clean up his mess. Worse still, Evanna thought that she might've been the reason. He had given her a look of loathing when he had opened that cage. Perhaps he was angry about the test, but really, he had just been asking for it.

For the next few days, both Lockhart and Evanna avoided each other as often as possible. It made Evanna feel slightly better that he finally seemed to realize that _she didn't like him_ , but Ron and Hermione were still fighting so she wasn't really very happy. Though Fred and George tried to cheer her up, she was just getting more and more depressed. Of course, Ron and Hermione hadn't realized that their friend was feeling so woebegone because she was avoiding them and giving them the silent treatment.

Another slight annoyance was Colin Creevey. He would hunt down Evanna six or seven times a day, getting such a thrill when she said hello to him, no matter how exasperated she sounded as she said it. Evanna understood that he was simply a bit starstruck, but she really did wish he would leave her alone for a bit.

On Friday, Evanna was feeling so despondent that she skipped breakfast to stay in bed, claiming she felt ill. Once all the girls had left the dorm, however, she curled up into a ball and began to cry. She had made up her mind to skip her morning class that day to pull herself together (or cry some more, she hadn't decided yet), when she heard a soft knock on the dormitory door.

"Evanna?" George asked quietly, opening the door a crack, giving her time to shout at him if she was changing or something. When he heard nothing except muffled sobs, he entered the room.

Evanna was sobbing into her pillow, refusing to face him. George hesitantly sat beside her on the bed. "Evanna, are you all right?" he asked, for lack of a better thing to say. He had never been very good with girls, unlike Fred, who some might call a ladies' man,

"Yeah, I just cry like this for fun," Evanna spat back, making George realize just how stupid his question was.

"Sorry, but I'm just worried about you," George muttered. "You're not eating, you're not sleeping, you're obviously not planning on going to classes . . ."

Evanna looked up at him, unable to keep the curiosity from her tear-filled eyes. "How'd you know I wasn't sleeping?"

"I listened you in the common room last night," George admitted. "You sing beautifully, by the way."

Evanna blushed. Unable to sleep due to her sadness, she had sat in the common room, staring out the window at the stars, singing under her breath. She hoped that he wasn't aware that she had done this more than once throughout the year before.

"I don't know the song though," George added.

"I wouldn't expect you to, it's from a Muggle movie," Evanna explained.

George ignored her use of the word 'movie' (he had no idea what that was), and asked, "Would you sing it again for me?"

Evanna went a very deep scarlet, but did as she was asked.

_Stay awake, don't rest your head_

_Don't lie down upon your bed_

_While the moon drifts in the skies_

_Stay awake, don't close your eyes_

_Though the world is fast asleep_

_Though your pillow's soft and deep_

_You're not sleepy as you seem_

_Stay awake, don't nod and dream_

_Stay awake, don't nod and dream_

George smiled softly, wiping the tears away from Evanna's wonderful green eyes. "You ready to come down for breakfast?"

Evanna shook her head. "Thanks for this George, but I'm really not . . . I'm sorry. Tell Fred that I'm sorry too."

George frowned, but nodded. "I'll leave you alone then." He hesitated, but then planted a kiss on Evanna's forehead. "Bye, Eva. I'll see you later."

Evanna gave a tiny smile at the nickname, and watched George disappear out the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George grabbed his broom and flew down the stairs (the girls' dorm didn't exactly like visits from boys and this was the only way up). Once at the bottom, he kicked a table on his way by. Those two were breaking Evanna apart! After he deposited his broom back in his own dorm, he went down to the Great Hall as fast as he could, to find Ron and Hermione quarreling as they ate breakfast.

" _You — two — idiots!_ " George yelled, causing Hermione and Ron to cease their bickering and stare at him. George was usually the calmer twin, so to see him shouting at them was definitely a sight to behold. " _Do you know what Evanna is doing right now?_ "

"Sick in bed," Hermione said confidently, as if this was a rather stupid question.

"That's what she _wants_ you to think, but really she's sitting in bed _crying her eyes out_!" George said through gritted teeth. "You two are _killing_ her! She _hates_ seeing you fight! She is falling into _depression_! Just go _fricking_ talk to her!"

Both second-years stared at George in slight fear. He sounded angrier than he should've if he and Evanna were _just_ friends. But that's all they were, right? Hermione and Ron's eyes turned to stare at each other.

"I — I never knew . . ." Hermione whispered, looking horrified at the prospect of Evanna in depression.

"Neither did I . . ." Ron replied, looking just as guilty and scared as Hermione did.

" _Go fix it_ ," George hissed, before stomping off to sit with Fred.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Ooh, cute George/Evanna moments! (At least I hope it's cute; what do you guys think?)
> 
> Please Review! ~Jayce


	19. Mud on the Quidditch Pitch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 19: Mud on the Quidditch Pitch
> 
> A/N: I think you'll all be happy to know that Ron and Hermione do apologize in this chapter. I hope you all like this chapter, because the next one probably won't come out soon. I've written it, but I'm very disappointed in how it turned out, so I'll probably do some major edits. Anyways, happy reading.

"Evanna? Evanna, wake up."

"Is she _really_ asleep?"

"Of course she is!"

"What if she's still giving us the silent treatment?"

"Ron, just shut up for a minute! Evanna, could you wake up please?"

Evanna groggily turned over in her bed, opening her eyes slightly. She could see Ron and Hermione standing over her bed, looking relieved when she smiled at them. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up.

"Since you two are no longer bickering upon sight of each other, I'm assuming that you finally kissed and made up?"

Ron and Hermione looked stunned, and Evanna failed to realize why for a few moments.

"Oh," she muttered, suddenly starting to feel very awake. " _Oh!_ No, no, to _kiss and make up_ — it's a _saying_! You know, a Muggle saying — Hermione, you must've heard it before? Never mind, _never mind_! But you two _are_ friends again, right?"

Ron and Hermione laughed and reassured their friend that they had indeed made up.

" _Good_! I was getting tired of ignoring you both! Do you know how hard it is to deal with classes without your best friends?" Evanna asked jokingly, and they all knew that her sadness had cleared off the moment her friends had come to apologize.

"Evanna, we're _really_ sorry — " Hermione began, but Evanna waved her hand dismissively.

"Already forgiven! Hey, wait," she checked the time quickly, " _you two skipped class to see me_!"

"Oh yeah, are you mad?" Ron asked.

On the contrary, Evanna grabbed them both in a very tight hug. It was hard to believe that Hermione would ever _willingly_ skip a class, but this just made Evanna realize how much her friends really cared about her. Ron and Hermione seemed to realize the same thing, knowing that Evanna would've done the same for them, and the three embraced happily.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna's Saturday did not have a great start.

Saturdays were days when you should sleep in. It was a general consensus that you wouldn't wake each other up too early on a Saturday. So when Evanna was shaken awake on Saturday, she was immediately in a foul mood.

"It's _Saturday_!" she moaned in protest, rolling over in bed to try and keep the warmth her blankets offered.

"Believe you me, I wouldn't be doing this if I weren't subjected to the same punishment," Angelina Johnson said tiredly, patting Evanna staunchly. "Come on, Evanna, let's get to the pitch. Maybe if we hurry, Oliver will let us stop in a few hours to eat breakfast."

" _In a few hours?!_ " Evanna flew to the windows, groaning when she saw the sun wasn't even fully over the horizon yet. " _Are you kidding me_?! Wake me up at the crack of dawn . . . _Ooh_! Oliver Wood, I am going to _kill_ you!"

Angelina laughed, heading out the door. "That's the spirit . . . I'll be waiting with the rest of the team for you to get ready."

Evanna begrudgingly changed into her Quidditch attire, plotting creative ways to murder the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. How _dare_ he wake her up so early . . . She had wanted to conjure a noose out of thin air and hang him, but didn't know how to, so she thought of knocking him out of the sky, maybe convincing the twins to aim a Bludger or two at him . . . Or _ten_ . . .

To save time, Evanna slid gracelessly down the banister of the spiral staircase that lead down to the common room, tripping at the end, yet still managed to stay on her feet, stumbling to George's side. She grinned shamelessly up at him. He gave her a wink in return.

The team started towards the Quidditch pitch sleepily. It seemed that everyone besides Oliver Wood was disgruntled at the early practice. Fred and George promised Evanna a few Bludgers in Oliver's direction.

"Evanna! Evanna!"

Evanna let out a groan; she did _not_ want to deal with him this early in the morning! Colin Creevey was racing along after the team, camera dangling from his neck, photo in his hand. He shoved it towards Evanna, and she frowned to see a photograph of Lockhart with his arm slung around her shoulder (though she was pleased to see her photograph self was putting up a fight about staying within Lockhart's grasp).

"Could you sign it?" Colin asked eagerly.

Evanna glanced at the team; those who weren't laughing (coughcough _FredandGeorge_ coughcough) were glaring at her, obviously just wanting to get this practice over with. "Not now, Colin. Quidditch practice, you know . . ."

"Oh, can I watch? I've never seen a real Quidditch game!"

"Well, it's _not_ a real Quidditch game, but yeah, go wait in the stands or something."

The tiny first-year enthusiastically darted for the stands as Evanna headed into the changing room with the rest of the team. Nobody except Wood was fully awake; the Weasley twins looked like they had just climbed out of bed (which was more than likely), Alicia Spinnet was nodding off next to a wall, while Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell were yawning widely. Evanna sat next to George, wanting to just jump on her broom and shake off her sleep.

But instead, Wood insisted on giving the team a talk about tactics. Evanna heard that he had spent the whole summer devising this new program and something else about making a difference, and then she had began to nod off on George's shoulder. George didn't seem to mind, in fact he was nearly drifting off too.

"Is that clear? Any questions?"

Oliver's final words jarred Evanna from her slumber. She rubbed her eyes frantically, trying to remember anything he said but failing miserably. At least she wasn't the only one who had dozed during Oliver's speech.

"I've got a question, Oliver," said George, who had woken with a start when Evanna's head had left his shoulder. "Why couldn't you have told us all this yesterday when we were awake?"

Evanna wanted to laugh, but only managed a yawn.

Oliver glared at George. "Now, listen here, you lot," he said, glowering at them all. "We should have won the Quidditch Cup last year. We're easily the best team. But unfortunately — owing to circumstances beyond our control — "

"Are you mad at me?" Evanna asked, with slight worry in her voice. The previous year, both she and George had been unable to play for the final match, losing Gryffindor the final match of the year and the Quidditch Cup. She still blamed herself for George's injury, though he had told her a hundred times to forget it.

"No, no, of course not, Evanna," Oliver said quickly, not wanting to see the second-year start crying (as happened last year when he mentioned their brutal defeat to her with slight resentment in his voice). "I'm just saying that this year we'll need to train harder than before . . ." He looked a bit scared at the anger in Fred and George's faces; they were best friends with Evanna and didn't want her getting hurt. "Let's go put our new theories into practice!"

"What new theories?"

This was evidently the wrong question for Evanna to ask, as Wood's face began to look uncannily like Uncle Vernon's did whenever she mentioned Hogwarts. He calmed down far quicker than Uncle Vernon did though, as he must've realized that nobody had really been listening and didn't want to this early in the morning. He said that he would tell them what to be doing as they flew, and the team marched out onto the pitch.

Evanna waved to Ron and Hermione, who were waiting for her in the stands.

"Are you done yet?" Ron asked incredulously. "We've already eaten breakfast!"

"No, we haven't even started!" Evanna groaned. "And don't talk to me about food right now! I'm starving!"

Mounting her broom, she kicked off the ground and into the air. The feeling of her braided hair whipping behind her, the feeling of the wind on her face, the feeling of being up in the air with no support except a thin strip of wood beneath her . . . It was the feeling of freedom.

"Hey Vanna, fancy a race?" Fred called to her, gesturing to himself and George.

Evanna merely gave them a grin, raising an eyebrow at their brooms. Her Nimbus was definitely much faster. "Sure thing, but prepare to lose!"

"On your marks, get set," George said, catching Evanna's eye and winking, "GO!"

The trio took off around the pitch, surprisingly close for two Cleansweep Fives versus a Nimbus Two Thousand. Faster and faster around to pitch, annoying Oliver to no end by ignoring his pleas to practice, until they were inches away from their designated finish line . . . Fred laughed out loud as he won, throwing his hands in the air in triumph.

"' _Prepare to lose_ ' my arse! _Ha_!" he cried, pointing at Evanna vigorously, attempting to taunt her, but only succeeding in making her giggle.

"Hey, look, it's that kid — what's his name? — Colin again," George said, looking at the stands.

Colin was indeed in the stands, on one of the highest seats, taking picture after picture of Evanna. Evanna rolled her eyes as Wood flew up to them, asking if Colin was a Slytherin spy.

"Does he _look_ like a spy?" she asked, still annoyed at Wood for forcing her to wake up so early in the morning. "He's just some Gryffindor first-year who is ( _unfortunately_ ) obsessed with me. It's really annoying actually."

"Besides, Slytherin doesn't need a spy," George added.

"Why's that?" Wood asked.

"Because they're here in person," he replied, pointing to the ground, where seven people in green robes were walking onto the field, each carrying an identical broom in hand. Wood grumbled something along the lines of ' _I booked the field!_ ' and flew down to meet the Slytherin team.

Evanna leaned forwards on her broom so that she was almost lying down on it. "What do you think'll happen?"

"I bet they'll get Oliver riled up and get us kicked off the pitch," Fred growled, glaring down at the Slytherins.

"I think it's more likely some teacher will intervene before then," George said. "We'll probably get to stay on the pitch, but . . ." He looked at Evanna and Fred. "Is it bad that I kinda want to get kicked off the field? I mean, we haven't had breakfast yet, not to mention a full eight hours of sleep."

Evanna and Fred began to laugh, until there was an exclamation of, " _Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones?!_ "

George, Evanna, and Fred exchanged bewildered glances, and flew to the ground, where they met Draco Malfoy smirking up at Oliver Wood, showing him the name inscribed on his broom handle. "What's going on?" Fred asked, though he already had a pretty good guess.

"I've just become the new Slytherin Seeker," Malfoy said, "and my father has _generously_ provided the whole team with the latest model of the Nimbus. I hear it outstrips _your_ model by a considerable amount — " Malfoy frowned at Evanna's lack of shock, but quickly moved on to smirk at the twins "— and those old Cleansweeps? Well, you might win against a _snail_."

Evanna grabbed the back of the twins' collars, to keep them from murdering the small blonde boy. "Not with so many witnesses, boys," she said in a loud enough whisper for Malfoy to hear her. He glared at her and she gave him an innocent look. "Something you wanted to say, Malfoy?"

"Careful, I think the field might start to get a bit muddy," he said, pointing to Ron and Hermione, who were hurrying towards them. Evanna didn't understand; it must've been an inside joke because the Slytherin team roared with laughter.

"What's happening?" Ron asked Evanna, looking over at Malfoy in his Quidditch robes. "Why aren't you playing? And what's _he_ doing here?"

"I'm the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley," said Malfoy, smugly. "Everyone's just been admiring the brooms my father's bought our team.

"Good, aren't they?" Malfoy continued smoothly at Ron's look of shock. "But perhaps the Gryffindor team will be able to raise some gold and get new brooms, too. You could raffle off those Cleansweep Fives; I expect a museum would bid for them."

"At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to _buy_ their way in," said Hermione sharply. " _They_ got in on pure talent."

Evanna gave Hermione a hi-five, grinning at Malfoy's thunderstruck look. He seemed to be at a loss for words.

"No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood," he finally spat.

Evanna knew immediately from the reaction that he had said something horrible. Every member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team looked aghast and uttered words of shock and anger. The twins had to be physically restrained to keep from hitting the blonde second-year, and the Slytherin team were sniggering. Hermione and Evanna exchanged looks of bemusement, completely oblivious to what had been said, but both assumed that it had been the word 'Mudblood'. Too late they noticed Ron pulling out his broken wand and aiming it at Malfoy.

His wand gave a loud bang and green light shot out of the end. The _wrong_ end. Ron was flung backwards several feet, and Evanna and Hermione hurried towards him, Hermione asking shrilly if he was all right. The Gryffindor team gathered around as well, looking worried for him. Even Colin Creevey, who had dashed down from the stands at the first signs of photo opportunities, was looking nervous for the ginger second-year.

Ron didn't speak, but he did give a loud burp. As he did, several slugs dribbled out of his mouth and down his front. Many different noises were made; the whole Slytherin team were doubling over in laughter, a few of the Gryffindors made noises of disgust, a few of sympathy, Colin gave a gasp of excitement and his camera gave a click as he took a picture. Evanna and Hermione helped Ron to his feet as he belched out more slugs.

"Come on, let's go to Hagrid. As I recall, magical creatures are his expertise," Evanna said and Hermione agreed. She could hear the Weasley twins snickering behind them as the trio set off; the twins knew about the gamekeeper's unhealthy obsession with highly dangerous beasts. In fact, Hagrid had adopted a dragon the year before, but that hadn't ended up too well.

But it wasn't the twins' laughter that irked her, it was the outrageously loud roars of laughter from the Slytherins and the smug look that had reappeared on Draco Malfoy's face that made her want to punch somebody. _Hard._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: _"I'm not dangerous! And I'm not homeless (anymore) . . ."_ Sorry, I'm watching AVPS right now haha. I hope you liked the chapter :)
> 
> Please Review! ~Jayce


	20. Bludger to the Head

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 20: Bludger to the Head
> 
> A/N: You'll be glad to know that I've just rewatched AVPM, AVPS, and AVPSY again, and have all the songs stuck in my head, and have a compelling urge to make them sing the songs in this story . . . Now, that won't happen, so don't get your hopes up (unless the opportunity is too flippin' perfect to pass up ;)
> 
> I hope you all like this chapter. Evanna is just such a trouble magnet :P Happy reading!

"So, a Mudblood is a really cruel name for someone who's Muggle-born?"

"Someone like me?"

"Exactly. It's nearly as bad as saying You-Know-Who's name out loud — "

"You mean _Voldemort_?"

" _Shut up, Vanna_! But yeah. You could think of it as a really horrible swear word — "

"And if I recall correctly, you two have no trouble saying swear words."

" _You shut up too, Granger_!"

"It's one of the few swear words we won't say. It's just so . . ."

"Vile?"

"Barbaric?"

"I was going to say offensive, but those work too."

Evanna, Hermione, Fred, and George were having a conversation about what happened at Quidditch practice that morning. After Evanna and Hermione had brought Ron to Hagrid, he had informed them of what Mudblood meant. It was a horrible word that some pure-bloods used for Muggle-borns. Evanna could only assume they did it to make themselves feel more important.

After a while, Ron hadn't stopped vomiting slugs, so Hagrid sent Evanna and Hermione to lunch while he accompanied Ron to the Hospital Wing. So, sitting with the twins at lunch time, a conversation on the events of the morning had begun.

"If pure-bloods use that word to describe Muggle-borns, why don't you two use it?" Hermione asked slowly, looking up at the twins.

Fred and George looked aghast; and not just their normal fake shock, this was genuine horror at the thought of using the word.

"Granger, I can't believe that you would think — !" Fred gasped, staring at Hermione with hurt flashing in his bright blue eyes. " _We're not cruel_! We're not pure-blood brats like Malfoy! We care about you — ! I mean, we care about Muggle-borns!"

If Hermione noticed his slip up, she didn't comment on it. She just moaned, "I'm _so_ sorry, I didn't mean to offend you!"

Fred gave her a small smile. "You're forgiven, Granger. But next time remember that not everybody is a pure-blood supremacist."

Hermione said one last, "Sorry!" but smiled at Fred all the same.

"Potter!"

Professor McGonagall came up, greeting each person curtly ("Miss Granger. Mr. Weasleys.") and handed Evanna a slip of paper. Evanna glanced at it.

_Evanna Lily Potter._

_Detention tonight at eight o'clock._

_Helping answer Professor Gilderoy Lockhart's fan mail._

"Lockhart's fan mail?!" Evanna cried, looking up at Professor McGonagall in dread. "What about Ron?"

"I have already seen Mr. Weasley in the Hospital Wing. He will be cleaning the trophy room with Mr. Filch."

"Could I go clean the trophy room too?"

"No, Lockhart asked for you personally. Eight o'clock, Miss Potter."

Professor McGonagall briskly walked away, leaving Evanna to let out a groan. Fred and George stifled their laughter and Hermione tried to comfort her friend. "It can't be _that_ bad . . . I mean, think of all the things he's done! Maybe he'll tell you about them while you work."

Evanna, who had put her head in her hands, gave a muffled, " _Ha_."

"You don't actually _believe_ that Lockhart's done all of those things, do you, Granger?" Fred asked, incredulously. "I mean, he's kind of an idiot . . ."

"But why would he claim to have done all that if he hadn't actually done it?" Hermione retorted, a blush spreading quickly across her cheeks. "Dumbledore hired him for goodness sakes! If he wasn't trustworthy, Dumbledore would've seen right through him, right? Besides, he's a teacher, and teachers are definitely trustworthy," Hermione added, folding her arms resolutely.

Evanna was suddenly seized in a fit of coughing that sounded suspiciously like, "Quirrell," but Hermione ignored her. Lockhart couldn't possibly be as incompetent and annoying as Evanna claimed, could he?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna had been stuck with a horrible sense of foreboding ever since that detention with Lockhart. The detention had gone well enough (Lockhart had seemed to have gotten over his avoidance of her, thinking that she simply needed to hear hours of 'helpful' tips on how to become famous), but it was what came afterwards that daunted her.

" _Come . . . come to me . . . Let me rip you . . . Let me tear you . . . Let me kill you . . ._ "

She shivered at the mere thought of the disembodied voice, which Lockhart had denied he had heard. He was either lying or Evanna was losing it. She somehow vouched for the second one.

"Evanna! Pay attention!"

Evanna snapped back to earth as Oliver Wood called out her name. She whipped her head around just in time to see a Bludger ricocheting towards her. She barely dodged the bloodthirsty ball, letting Fred whack it away. She gripped the handle of her Nimbus tighter. _Curse this rain!_ She could hardly see two feet in front of her face, let alone a tiny golden Snitch! Plus, she couldn't concentrate, not with that voice plaguing her thoughts . . .

The recent rain hadn't deterred Oliver's spirit, but it sure had put a damper on the rest of the team (no pun intended). Even Evanna, who often found that Quidditch practice would take her mind off of her worries and always tried to have an optimistic attitude, couldn't seem to find the ray of sunlight in the situation.

She had nearly been knocked over by Katie Bell, who hadn't seen her in the gloomy light, when she heard it again. The same words, the same voice. " _Come . . . come to me . . . Let me rip you . . . Let me tear you . . . Let me kill you . . ._ " Perhaps it was only in her head, but she looked wildly around for a source.

Unfortunately, she completely missed the Bludger that was coming towards her head.

"Evanna!" cried George, as the young redhead fell from the sky towards the ground below. Zooming down, George knew he had to catch her. A fall like that, plus a Bludger to the head? That could kill her.

He did catch her, but dives were Evanna's specialty, not his. He collided with the ground, and both he and the unconscious Evanna rolled across the mud a little ways from the force of the impact. George scrambled to his knees, crawling over to Evanna, frantically checking her pulse. By this time, the rest of the team had landed around them (including Fred, who had Evanna's broomstick in hand), all looking frightened for the youngest member.

George let out a sigh of relief; she was breathing. He looked up at Oliver, who gave a nod, knowing what George wanted (and needed) to do. Picking her up bridal style (that was the easiest way to carry her), he left towards the Hospital Wing, Fred right at his heels, both of them filled with fear and relief.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna woke up with a throbbing headache. She let out a groan, but didn't open her eyes. It took too much effort to try.

"She's awake!"

That voice sounded so familiar . . .

"Madam Pomfrey, she's awake!"

Another familiar voice . . . Or was that the same one? No, they were nearly identical, but not quite. One was deeper.

"Miss Potter? Miss Potter?"

Miss Potter . . . Was that her? Yes, yes it was, wasn't it?

"Miss Potter, could you open your eyes?"

Evanna slid her eyes open just ever so slightly. Everything was a blur.

"Attagirl. A bit more?"

Evanna groaned, opening her eyelids about halfway. She could see three people around her; identical twin boys and a nurse (she must've been, based on how she was fussing about her).

"That's it," the nurse said, smiling warmly down at her. "Now, can you speak?"

"Yes," Evanna croaked, watching as the twins' facial expressions changed from worry to relief to worry again in a matter of seconds.

"Could you tell me who you are?"

" _You mean she might've lost her memory?!_ " one of the twins asked, frantically.

"If she has, I can fix it, but I doubt she has. Could you tell me a bit about yourself?" the nurse directed the question at Evanna, who scrunched up her nose in thought. Despite his worries, George couldn't help but notice how cute it looked.

"I'm Evanna Lily Potter," Evanna began slowly. "I'm twelve years old and I'm in my second year at Hogwarts. I'm in Gryffindor and I'm a Seeker on the Quidditch team . . ."

"Good, good," the nurse said. "How about your friends? Do you remember these young lads?"

"That's Fred," Evanna said, pointing at Fred, "and that's George," she pointed at George. "And don't tell me I'm wrong, because I'm not! Ron and Hermione are my best friends too. We stopped a mountain troll together!" Evanna smiled childishly at the memory.

"Last question, do you remember your accident?"

"I was in an accident?"

The colour drained from Fred and George's faces. Madam Pomfrey simply said, "Yes, now what do you remember about it?"

Evanna screwed up her face in concentration. It was all slowly starting to come back to her. "I — I was on my broom . . . It was rainy and I couldn't see two feet in front of me, but Oliver insisted we keep practicing . . . I fell off my broom . . . I heard a voice yell my name . . . Th-that's all."

"But why did you fall off your broom?"

"A Bludger, I think . . . I wasn't paying attention really . . ."

"Why not?"

"I — I can't remember . . ."

"That's fine dear, just drink this and you'll be out of here soon enough," Madam Pomfrey said, giving Evanna a cup of a strange looking liquid (a potion to be sure), which Evanna didn't question.

Fred and George sat beside Evanna, looking at her with faces full of concern as she downed the drink. But their concern vanished as Evanna blinked and they could see memories rush back into her eyes. She rubbed her no-longer-throbbing head and smiled at them, motioning for a hug. The twins flung themselves onto her, embracing her tightly.

When they released each other, Fred shook his finger at her scoldingly. "No more memory loss, missy!"

Madam Pomfrey smiled as the three students laughed together. "Evanna dear, you'll need to stay for a few nights in the Hospital Wing. I need to make sure you keep your memory." Madam Pomfrey handed Evanna another potion. "You need sleep." She glanced at Fred and George as Evanna downed the potion. "She'll be asleep in a few minutes, boys. Feel free to stay for a little longer, but don't wake her up. She needs a nice, dreamless sleep."

"All right," Fred said, pretending to slap the nearly-asleep Evanna awake.

Madam Pomfrey gave him a stern look, then laughed when Evanna muttered, "Don't even think about it, Frederick." Fred glared at her, but she was already asleep.

"Be a good boy, _Frederick_ ," Madam Pomfrey said, smiling.

"Aren't I always?" Fred asked with a wink.

Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes and bustled away. But she couldn't help but notice as George intertwined his fingers with Evanna's limp hand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Thanks for bringing my sketchbook, George," Evanna grinned, giving her friend a one-armed hug, taking the sketchbook and drawing utensils in the other hand.

"No problem," George said, a light blush dusting his cheeks. "I knew that you'd be dead bored without this thing."

"You're right there," Evanna laughed. "Madam Pomfrey says I'll probably get out soon, but you see, I keep forgetting where I put things and freaking out over people when I can't find it, so she's keeping me a few extra days."

Suddenly, her eyes widened and she began scrambling around her bedside table. " _Where's my wand?!_ " she asked frantically. " _Where is it?!_ "

George chuckled softly, pulling an eleven inch holly and phoenix feather wand from behind her ear. Evanna blushed, taking the wand from him and slowly placing it on the bedside table (beside a collection of chocolate frogs from Fred).

"See what I mean?" Evanna mumbled. "I still need to work on my memory a tad bit." She sighed. "I don't know if I'll get through this."

"You will. I believe in you," George said quietly, looking sincerely into Evanna's beautiful green eyes. Bright blue eyes stared at Evanna, and for a few minutes, George forgot that he shouldn't kiss this innocent twelve-year-old. He restrained himself at the last possible moment and looked away quickly, his face going scarlet.

Evanna went red too, and buried her face in her sketchbook, beginning to draw. For a while, they sat in silence, refusing to make eye contact. George finally looked over to see what she was drawing.

It was him.

His lips twisted into a small smile. Was it bad that he had fallen head over heels for this girl? Yes, he decided, it was. This girl had completely captivated his heart without meaning or trying to. She was too young to date him and dating might ruin their friendship. But he could hope. Oh and he did hope, more than anything, that she would one day be his.

This _had_ to be bad for his health.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: See, I didn't think that learning that Filch was a squib or going to the Death Day party was too necessary, so I just kept her in the Hospital Wing for a couple of days. (At first, I had her go to the Death Day party and all that, but it didn't flow very well, so I changed it :)
> 
> Oh my gosh, I just found out that the dot-dot-dot thing has a name! O.O (Sorry, off topic)
> 
> Please Review! ~Jayce


	21. Hearing Disembodied Voices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 21: Hearing Disembodied Voices
> 
> A/N: I'm glad that you all liked all my Georgvanna (- I've got a ship name now!) in the last chapter :D Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter of the writing on the wall. I love you all, happy reading!

Ron waited patiently outside the Hospital Wing doors. Evanna was getting her final checkup from Madam Pomfrey and then she would be joining him (and Hermione, wherever she had run off to) to the Halloween Feast. It was supposed to be just as fantastic as the year before, but they were running very late at the moment. He supposed that he couldn't blame Madam Pomfrey for double and triple checking that Evanna had her memory back, but really she seemed fine to him. She hadn't forgotten or misplaced anything for the whole day!

Hermione dashed up to him just then, panting and holding a very thick book to her chest. "Sorry I'm late, I was — "

"In the library," Ron finished. " _I know_. But she hasn't gotten out yet either, so it's all right."

"Oh we're going to be very late," Hermione muttered.

" _Thank you, captain obvious_ ," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "Maybe we'll arrive in time for pudding."

"I hope so, it's my favourite part."

Both heads whipped towards the doors, seeing Evanna standing in the open doorway with a huge grin on her face. She had her sketchbook under one arm with her pencils in hand. She began to walk towards the stairs, her friends hurrying to either side of her.

"So?" asked Hermione anxiously. "You've regained all your memories?"

"No, Madam Pomfrey sent me out here with no recollection of who I am," Evanna said in a deadpan. " _Of course_ I've got my memory back!" Evanna flinched at Hermione's look of sadness. "Sorry, 'Mione. I love your concern, but sometimes you just ask the — "

" _. . . rip . . . tear . . . kill . . ._ "

Evanna stopped dead in her tracks. It was that voice again. The same one from Lockhart's office. The same one that had driven fear into her heart. The same on that made her lose her focus so completely that she was hit by a Bludger and given temporary memory loss.

Obviously, Hermione and Ron hadn't heard it though, as they gave Evanna confused and worried glances.

"Evanna? What's wrong?" Ron asked worriedly. "Do you remember who I am?"

"Yes, now shut up! I heard the voice again," Evanna muttered, looking up and down the passageway they were in for any signs of life. There didn't seem to be anybody except them.

" _. . . soo hungry . . . for so long . . ._ "

"What voice, Evanna?" Hermione asked.

"Listen!" Evanna urged, beginning to walk towards where she thought the voice was coming from. But . . . No . . . It couldn't be . . .

" _. . . kill . . . time to kill . . ._ "

It was moving upwards. What sort of creature was invisible, yet come also go through ceilings and walls? Evanna broke into a run, Ron and Hermione immediately following suite, dashing upstairs to where the voice was headed.

"Evanna! Where are you going?!"

Evanna didn't respond to the question, continuing to listen and follow the strange voice up the stairs.

" _. . . I smell blood. . . . I SMELL BLOOD!_ "

" _It's going to kill someone!_ " Evanna cried, darting up a last flight of stairs, and along a deserted passage to see —

"Oh no."

The colour had drained from Evanna's face as she examined the scene before her. She felt faint. Leaning against a wall, she nearly slipped in a large puddle of water on the floor. Trying to calm herself, she looked back up at the scene.

Mrs. Norris, Filch's cat, was stiff as a board with wide eyes, hung by her tail in a torch bracket. Above her, written on the wall in something that looked scarily similar to blood, were the words: _THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE._

"Evanna, we need to get out of here," Ron said, tugging on his friend's arm. He was looking nervously around, as if he thought someone was going to jump out and yell at them for killing Mrs. Norris (which is exactly what he thought).

"Right," Evanna said distractedly, still staring at the wall as Ron began to drag her away.

But it was too late. They could hear thousands of footsteps thundering towards them, signalling that the Halloween feast had just ended. Before the trio could get away from the crime scene, the corridor flooded with students of all ages, stopping almost unanimously in their tracks when they noticed the three second-years and the wall behind them. The silence made Evanna feel even more scared than the writing itself had.

Suddenly, the cold voice of Draco Malfoy ripped through the silence, shouting, "Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!" He was looking alive as he grinned evilly at the immobile cat.

Evanna caught George's eye in the crowd (it wasn't too hard; he and Fred were very tall) and could see horror on his face, matching hers perfectly. She turned her face back towards the wall. Who had done this?

" _You_!"

She had been so immersed in her own fear-filled thoughts that she hadn't heard Filch until he had grabbed her arm, yelling at her.

" _You_! You've murdered my cat! _You've killed her_! I'll kill _you_! I'll — "

" _Argus_!"

Dumbledore swept towards the caretaker and the horrified second-year. A number of other teachers followed him. Evanna looked up at the headmaster with fear etched clearly on her face. She hadn't done any of this! She couldn't have! Filch reluctantly released Evanna's arm (leaving a large red mark where he had been gripping her), and watched as Dumbledore pulled his cat from the torch bracket.

"Come with me, Argus," he said to Filch. "You too, Miss Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger."

"My office is nearest, Headmaster — just upstairs — please feel free — " Lockhart offered.

"Thank you, Gilderoy," said Dumbledore, beginning to walk forwards through the crowd, which had parted like the Red Sea.

Evanna, Ron, and Hermione exchanged nervous glances and followed Dumbledore to Gilderoy Lockhart's office.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night, Evanna snuck down to the common room, as she so often did when she was deprived of the ability to sleep. But this time, instead of sketching or singing to herself, she just sat at a window seat and stared out at the moon. Tears were glistening on her cheeks.

George was in the common room for a similar reason. He, too, was sleep deprived, but he had wandered down to the common room because he had heard her crying. He crept to her side, also looking out at the night sky.

"Penny for your thoughts?" he asked, glancing over to her.

Evanna jumped, having not heard him come downstairs. George gave her a tiny smile. She shrugged, saying, "Oh, nothing to worry about, it's just that a _cat's been petrified, someone's graffitied the wall,_ claiming that the _Chamber of Secrets_ (whatever the heck that is) has been opened, and I was _nearly blamed_ for all of the above. In fact," she mused, "some people probably do blame me. I mean, I was the first on the scene, so I suppose it's a logical thought."

"Sorry," George muttered.

"And why are you apologizing?" Evanna asked, arching a crimson eyebrow. "It's not your fault that I was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"It's my fault you were hit with the Bludger."

"How? I just wasn't paying attention."

"I could've hit it away!"

"You weren't _anywhere_ near it! It was _next to impossible_ for you to get it!"

"I should've tried!"

"George, you trusted my ability — "

"I could see that you were out of focus — "

"It's not your fault that I was _freaking_ scared!" Evanna cried, turning away from George.

"Scared?" George suddenly softened. "Why were you scared, Eva?"

Evanna smiled slightly at the nickname. "You'll think I'm crazy."

"Try me."

Evanna sucked in a breath. He looked so serious.

"Evanna, I swear that I won't laugh or whatever you're thinking I'm going to do," George whispered, taking her hand in his.

Evanna nodded and whispered back, "In my detention with Lockhart — you remember that, right? — I heard a voice. But nobody was there. It was just this disembodied voice. A horrible, bloodcurdling voice that sent shivers down my spine. I was afraid. I kept hearing it in my thoughts. I couldn't focus on anything, not even Quidditch." Evanna shuddered at the memory. "After I was hit with the Bludger, I actually forgot about it, until tonight. I heard it again. That's why I was first on the scene. I could hear it, and it was talking about killing someone. Then we found Mrs. Norris petrified . . . But nobody else was there." Evanna felt more tears slip down her face.

George pulled Evanna into his chest, hugging her tightly. "Eva, it's okay."

" _No it's not!_ " Evanna cried. "Hearing voices _isn't_ okay! It's not normal, not even in the wizarding world!"

George opened his mouth, but couldn't think of anything comforting to tell the girl. Evanna sighed, pushing away from George. " _I knew it._ It _won't_ be okay." George watched helplessly as she headed back up to her dorm, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna couldn't help but notice how a majority of the school was avoiding her. For example, when she greeted Justin Finch-Fletchley politely in the corridors today, he darted away from her without even replying.

Of course, this wasn't her biggest concern. At the moment, she had to find Ron. Snape had kept her after class, and she was supposed to meet him in the library. On the way, she spotted Ginny, who was sitting on a bench, scribbling furiously in her diary. Evanna waved, but Ginny just slammed the book shut fearfully. Shrugging off the youngest Weasley's behavior (after all, the girl was still a bit star struck around her unfortunately), Evanna pushed open the library doors.

She could see Ron near the back, measuring out his History of Magic essay (the same essay that Evanna had already finished). But as she made her way over to him, she bumped into two tall ginger boys.

"Sorry, Vanna," said Fred.

"It's fine," Evanna said, squeezing past them, not making eye contact with one of them in particular. Fred noticed this, his eyes darting between his brother and Evanna. Had something happened between them?

After Evanna had gone off to talk to Ickle Ronniekins and Granger, Fred pulled George into a quiet corner. "What's with you and Vanna?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" George asked, refusing eye contact with his twin.

Fred rolled his eyes; George was such a bad liar. "I am your twin. I know you better than you know yourself. Don't lie to me, Georgie."

"Fine. Last night, we had a chat and . . . I said something that was meant to be comforting, but it wasn't. She's just a bit upset with me," George admitted. At Fred's raised eyebrow, George hastily added, "I'm sure the whole thing'll blow over soon. I mean, this is _Evanna Potter_ we're talking about!"

Fred didn't look convinced, but didn't push the matter either.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

History of Magic was easily the most boring class. Professor Binns was the only ghost teacher, and he just droned on and on while the majority of the class slept. Evanna had just been sketching out a wall with a bloody message and stiff cat beside it, recalling Halloween night, when something that had never happened in this class before happened.

Hermione had raised her hand.

Now, Hermione was a notorious know-it-all, so raising her hand wasn't surprising, _in any other class_. But in History of Magic, even Hermione didn't interrupt the ghost.

Professor Binns seemed just as surprised as Evanna was. "Miss — er — ?"

"Granger, Professor. I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets," said Hermione in a clear voice.

The whole class suddenly woke up. This was the topic that everyone had wanted to learn since Halloween, but Hogwarts: A History had a waiting list so long that it would take months for anyone to find out anything.

"My subject is History of Magic," he said in his dry, wheezy voice. "I deal with _facts_ , Miss Granger, not myths and legends." He cleared his throat with a small noise like chalk snapping and continued, "In September of that year, a subcommittee of Sardinian sorcerers — "

He stuttered to a halt. Hermione's hand was waving in the air again.

"Miss Grant?"

"Please, sir, don't legends always have a basis in fact?"

"Well," said Professor Binns slowly, "yes, one could argue that, I suppose." He peered at Hermione as though he had never seen a student properly before. "However, the legend of which you speak is such a very _sensational_ , even _ludicrous_ tale — "

He glanced around at the class, looking surprised to find that they were hanging on his every word. Evanna was positively that neither when he was dead nor alive did he get attention like this.

"Oh, very well," he said slowly. "Let me see . . . the Chamber of Secrets . . .

"You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago — the precise date is uncertain — by the four greatest witches and wizards of the age. The four school Houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution.

"For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more _selective_ about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. After a while, there was a serious argument on the subject between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school.

"Reliable historical sources tell us this much. But these honest facts have been obscured by the fanciful legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing.

"Slytherin, according to the legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic."

There was an excited silence, as the second-years waited hungrily for more.

"The whole thing is arrant nonsense, of course," Professor Binns said, as if trying to get rid of the awe that had plagued the classroom. "Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most learned witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to frighten the gullible."

Hermione's hand was back in the air.

"Sir — what exactly do you mean by the 'horror within' the Chamber?"

"That is believed to be some sort of monster, which the Heir of Slytherin alone can control," said Professor Binns in his dry, reedy voice.

The class exchanged nervous looks.

"I tell you, the thing does not exist," said Professor Binns, shuffling his notes. "There is no Chamber and no monster."

"But, sir," said Seamus Finnigan, "if the Chamber can only be opened by Slytherin's true heir, no one else would be able to find it, _would_ they?"

"Nonsense, O'Flaherty," said Professor Binns in an aggravated tone. "If a long succession of Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses haven't found the thing — "

"But, Professor," piped up Parvati Patil, "you'd probably have to use Dark Magic to open it — "

"Just because a wizard _doesn't_ use Dark Magic doesn't mean he _can't_ , Miss Pennyfeather," snapped Professor Binns. "I repeat, if the likes of Dumbledore — "

"But maybe you've got to be related to Slytherin, so Dumbledore couldn't — " began Dean Thomas, but Professor Binns had had enough.

"That will do," he said sharply. "It is a myth! It does not exist! There is not a shred of evidence that Slytherin ever built so much as a secret broom cupboard! I regret telling you such a foolish story! We will return, if you please, to _history_ , to solid, believable, verifiable _fact_!"

Evanna took a deep breath, looking around the classroom. Most people had returned to their naps, but Evanna's head was spinning. There was too much to think about, too much that made sense and too much that didn't. She actually resorted to gripping her head to try and stop the thought swirling around her mind. She didn't want to be involved in this mystery. Last year had enough adventure for her. If only she didn't have such a naturally inquisitive nature . . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Eh, I'm not super proud of that last bit, but whatever. How did YOU think of this chapter?
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	22. A Little Bit of Snooping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 22: A Little Bit of Snooping
> 
> A/N: I'm sorry that this chapter is a bit shorter than the others, but I wanted to keep the Quidditch game as a seperate chapter, so yeah :)
> 
> I also want to take the time and thank every single guest who reviewed this story (even Goose, who said, Nice job at disguising a slash story. BECAUSE IT TAKES A LOT MORE THAN TROLLS TO MAKE ME FEEL BAD ABOUT MYSELF OR MY STORIES! :D) so I love you all, including the non-guests, and even Goose, yes I love you too, because you know what? I want to love everybody, so that's what I do! (If it;s not obvious, I am a Hufflepuff XD)
> 
> So thank you to everyone, you are all amazing, keep reading, please vote on my poll, and YAY! GO READ :P

Deep in a heated conversation about the Chamber of Secrets, Evanna, Ron, and Hermione hadn't realized that they had walked down the corridor where the attack on Mrs. Norris had occurred. It looked exactly the same as it had on Halloween, excluding the fact that there was no petrified cat hanging from the torch bracket and that Filch had taken up post here (though he was nowhere to be found at the moment) so there was a chair there. Evanna stared up at the words, "The Chamber of Secrets Has Been Opened. Enemies of the Heir, Beware." Her curiosity was beginning to peak (though some might call it being nosy or meddlesome, but really it wasn't anymore nosy than Nancy Drew!).

"It couldn't hurt to do some poking around," Evanna said, beginning to examine the floor for clues. She glanced up at Ron and Hermione, who seemed to think she was being silly. "Well, come on!" They exchanged looks, but began to search around anyways.

"Aha! Scorch marks, here and here!" Evanna announced, pointing to two spots on the floor.

"And come look at this," Hermione said, beckoning for Ron and Evanna to the window beside the message on the wall. "This doesn't look natural."

About twenty spiders were fighting to escape through a small crack in the window pane, as if they were scared of something. Evanna looked fearfully around, wondering if whatever petrified Mrs. Norris was nearby. Ron was also looking fearful, but not for fear of a petrifying monster. He was standing as far away possible from the window, staring at the spiders as if they were about to kill him.

"I — don't — like — spiders," he said tensely when Hermione asked what was wrong.

Evanna remembered hearing the story of when Fred had turned Ron's teddy bear into a spider because Ron had broken his toy broomstick. Fred and George had recalled that as their 'first real prank', while Ron had referred to the incident as 'scariest moment of his life'. That was before they had fought Quirrell for the Philosopher's Stone, of course.

"Now, Hermione, arachnophobia is a perfectly normal fear," Evanna interrupted Hermione's giggles. "Even if it seems a bit irrational, there are plenty of amazingly irrational fears that can still be classified as normal. I'll bet we all have some weird thing that scares us."

This seemed to cease Hermione's laughter, so Evanna began to resume her snooping — no, not snooping, that makes her sound nosy, she meant her examination of the crime scene. She went over to the wall she had leaned against before, remembering that the floor had been so wet that she had nearly slipped. "Hey, why d'you think it was so wet on the night of the attack?"

"Probably Moaning Myrtle," Hermione shrugged, looking towards a door which was labelled as the girls' bathroom. Evanna made an ' _Ah_ ' of agreement.

"Who?" Ron asked.

"She's a ghost who haunts one of the toilets in that bathroom," Hermione explained. "It's been out-of-order all year because she keeps having tantrums and flooding the place. But everyone avoids it if they can. It's rather annoying to do your business with her crying all the time."

"Hey, d'you think she saw anything on the night of the attack?" Evanna asked suddenly.

"Oh yeah, maybe!" Ron agreed.

Hermione opened the door to the bathroom, ignoring the 'Out of Order' sign. Evanna glanced around the gloomy bathroom; it looked just the same as the last time she had the misfortune of stepping in here, except maybe with a few more cracks on the mirror or chips in the sinks.

Walking towards the very last stall, Hermione glanced around (to make very sure that they were alone) and pushed it open. A young ghost, probably no older than Fred and George, sat on the tank of the toilet. She wore her hair in pigtails and had round glasses. Evanna wouldn't ever admit it, but she did think that Myrtle looked rather ugly.

"Hello Myrtle, how are you?" Hermione asked.

Myrtle's eyes glared scrutinizingly at Ron. "This is a _girls'_ bathroom. _He_ ," she put high emphasis on the word 'he', "is not a girl."

"We were just wanting to introduce him to you, Myrtle," Evanna said quickly. "Ron, this is Myrtle. Myrtle, this is Ron."

Myrtle made a 'hmph' noise when Ron said hello.

"Anyways," Hermione continued, "we were just wondering if you saw anything — er — out of the ordinary on the night of Halloween."

"Why?" Myrtle asked suspiciously.

"Because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween. Did you see anyone near here that night?" Evanna asked.

"I wasn't paying attention," said Myrtle dramatically. "Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to _kill_ myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I'm — that I'm — "

"Already dead," Ron suggested helpfully.

With a tragic cry, Myrtle did a backflip in the air and dived headfirst into the toilet. Evanna backed away a bit to avoid being splashed with water. Hermione just sighed exasperatedly, while Ron gave Evanna a nudge with his elbow, saying, "She's almost as dramatic as you are."

Evanna rolled her eyes, but nevertheless gave a giggle as she opened the door and the three of them returned to the corridor. Unfortunately, they were no longer alone.

" _Ron_!"

Percy sounded completely aghast, matching his facial expression perfectly.

"That's a _girls'_ bathroom!" he gasped. "What were _you_ — ?"

"Just having a look around," Ron shrugged. "Clues, you know — "

Evanna didn't comment, feeling like she didn't really want to get involved in this siblings rivalry.

"Get — away — from — there — " Percy said, striding toward them and starting to bustle them along, flapping his arms. "Don't you care what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone's at dinner — "

"Why shouldn't we be here?" said Ron hotly, stopping short and glaring at Percy. "Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!"

"That's what I told Ginny," said Percy fiercely, "but she still seems to think you're going to be expelled, I've never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out, you might think of her, all the first years are thoroughly overexcited by this business — "

"Do _you_ think that I'm the Heir of Slytherin, Percy?" Evanna asked suddenly, looking up at the prefect with hurt flashing across her green eyes.

Percy seemed startled and very flustered by the question. He couldn't really say yes, no matter what anybody else said. This sweet second-year was in no possible way an evil master mind. She cared too much about the welfare of others.

"No, of course not," he sighed finally.

"Then why are you implying it?" Evanna asked, hands on her hips.

He bit his lip. She really was a persuasive little devil, wasn't she?

"I'm sorry, Evanna, I never meant to imply that," he said. "But please, in the future, keep Ron away from the girls' bathroom."

Evanna gave a goofy salute. "Sir, yes sir!"

Percy cast his youngest brother one final glare and walked away, muttering about being swayed by a second-year. Evanna gave Ron a wink, which was so reminiscent of Fred and George that she must've picked it up from them.

"Now what?" Ron asked, once his brother was gone. "All we've discovered is that spiders —" he paused to shudder "— run from this thing and that Moaning Myrtle has _issues_!"

"There's only one solution," Hermione announced, beginning to walk away with purpose. " _The library_."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well? It's been days since the two of you have spoken; I think it's time to apologize."

Fred was right and George knew it. Fred knew it. Heck, _even Lee_ , who had no idea what Fred was talking about, knew it! George needed to get his head out of his arse and apologize to Evanna.

It wasn't for lack of trying that the apology hadn't happened yet. Evanna just didn't want to speak to him. She had avoided him that first day after their little squabble or whatever it was, so he had decided (thought it hadn't been his smartest decision) to wait for her to come around. Of course, anyone who knew Evanna knew that she could be stubborn as a mule when she wanted to be, and this was definitely one of those times.

But now, George waited outside Evanna's Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, desperate to give her an apology, even if she didn't forgive him. The second-year students filed out, but he didn't see Evanna's unmistakable dark red braid among the many heads. He was just about to go inside, when Evanna, Ron, and Hermione came out of the classroom, looking astonished and accomplished.

"I don't believe it!" Evanna was exclaiming. "He didn't even _look_ at the book we wanted — " She stopped short when she saw George, and then turned quickly away from him. George grabbed her elbow, looking at her pleadingly. Evanna gave a sigh and said to Ron and Hermione, "You two go on. I'll catch up."

Evanna and George walked together in the opposite direction of Ron and Hermione, Evanna avoiding all eye contact. George had his hands as deep in his pockets as they could go, feeling awkward.

"Evanna," he said suddenly, turning to face the twelve-year-old, "I am _so_ sorry." When she said nothing, he continued. "I never meant any harm by what I said, or what I didn't, and I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to feel so scared or angry or sad or whatever you were feeling. I care about you, Eva. Please talk to me again."

Evanna didn't speak, but she did fling her arms around George's midriff in a tight hug. George hugged her tightly back, and he could hear a sniffle from the small girl.

"I forgive you, George," Evanna choked out, and George could tell she was on the brink of tears. He just hugged her tighter, to reassure her that everything was going to be all right.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of his heart. Evanna had accepted his apology, they were now officially talking again, and their friendship as still intact! He practically skipped through the halls, until he reached one empty corridor where he stopped dead in his tracks. He had unknowingly wandered into _that_ corridor. The one with the message on the wall.

He would've turned around immediately, had he not noticed something interesting. Bending down to get a closer look, he saw scorch marks on the floor. Why would there be those sort of marks unless the monster was some sort of fire-breather? But that didn't add up; what sort of mysterious monster could breath fire, petrify cats, _and_ sneak around unnoticed by thousands of students and staff milling about?

Maybe the scorch marks weren't from fire, maybe it was something else. But that still left him with the question of a creature with the ability to petrify animals and become invisible.

Suddenly hearing footsteps coming that way, George began to flee from the scene. It was probably Filch, and ever since Mrs. Norris had been petrified, he'd been trying to put students in detention for looking happy or breathing loudly. George was sure that snooping around a crime scene would get him at least a week's worth, and he couldn't get detention and let Fred miss out on it, now could he?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Wow, you draw really well, Dean!"

"I have to say the same to you, Evanna."

Dean and Evanna sat on two armchairs by a table, looking through each other's sketchbooks. Evanna found that Dean mostly drew the boys in his dorm (with a surprisingly large amount of Seamus), while she tended to draw everybody she saw. She even had a drawing of Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle somewhere in there!

She was about to comment on a very nice drawing of Seamus (without a shirt on; she wondered if there was something between those two that she didn't know about) when she was distracted by George running into the common room so fast that he was almost a blur. He also seemed to be very unfocused, as he tumbled over the back of one of the couches by mistake. He lay there in a heap for a moment, then finally looked up. Pushing his hair out of his eyes, he grinned up at Evanna and Dean.

"Hey. How's it going?"

Evanna burst into giggles at how nonchalantly he said this while looking like he just rolled down a hill. George just blew her an exaggerated kiss, succeeding to make her laugh even harder.

Dean glanced between George and Evanna. He doubted that any two people had a more confusing relationship than these two. While George looked like he liked Evanna more than a friend, Evanna seemed oblivious to his feelings (even when they were written clearly on his face), though she did blush around him a lot, so she probably liked him too. Neither of them seemed to want to confess their feelings, but they didn't notice how the other felt either. Dean shook his head; they were going to end up dating at some point, mark his words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Alrighty, I hope you liked this chapter! Yes, Dean and Evanna finally had a "drawing date" together! And a bit of Georgvanna for all those who are obsessed (including myself :P)
> 
> Please vote on my poll and review! ~Jayce


	23. Breaking the Stereotype

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 23: Breaking the Stereotype
> 
> A/N: Okay, I need to address the wonderful guests who reviewed the last chapter. Especially the ones who said that I was optimistic. Look, I just have to say, this is something I strive to be. I mean, that is exactly what I want to be known as. Literally, at my Youth Group, we got the question "Who do you want to be remembered as when you die?" and I said "I want to be remembered as that person who was happy and kind to everybody" and APPARENTLY IT'S WORKING! That is literally my life goal: Be happy and make others happy.
> 
> So that's just something I needed to say. You all rock, I'm super glad you all love my story, love you, thanks for reading!

Tracey Davis was a Slytherin. She wasn't proud of it, but she was. If the Slytherin house didn't have such a bad reputation, she might not mind. But apparently, everybody who was sorted into Slytherin was automatically a dark wizard, siding with the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord. Tracey hated having people avoid her in the halls when they caught a glimpse of her green and silver tie. She so badly wanted to be proud of her house, but she couldn't be.

And she wasn't the only one. Her two best friends, Daphne Greengrass and Blaise Zabini, were on her side. They wanted to have unity between the houses, but instead they were labeled as those 'dark wizards in the making'. Draco Malfoy didn't make their attempts at befriending students from other houses any easier. With him and Evanna Potter's crew always going at it, it was a miracle that any of the Gryffindor house would even glance in their direction.

Suddenly, Tracey collided with another body, causing both of them to fall over. "Merlin, I'm sorry!" Tracey exclaimed, standing up and offering her hand to the other. "I wasn't paying attention — "

"It's fine, we've all been there," said Evanna Potter, gratefully taking Tracey's hand.

Tracey just stared at the redhead. Evanna Potter, twice defeater of the Dark Lord, second-year Gryffindor, and enemy of Draco Malfoy, was actually talking to her! "I — You're — I mean — I'm a Slytherin!" Tracey exclaimed, still staring at Evanna in shock.

"So?" was all Evanna said, before holding out her hand politely for Tracey to shake. "I'm Evanna Potter, who are you?"

Tracey hesitantly shook the Gryffindor's hand. "Tracey Davis. Sorry for staring, but usually everyone avoids us Slytherins."

"Do you want me to avoid you?" Evanna asked.

"No, of course not," Tracey said quickly. "But people just assume that we're all evil, and I thought that you of all people would definitely — "

"I don't use Draco as an example of all the Slytherins," Evanna said, with slight annoyance in her voice. "He's an idiot. You, on the other hand, are definitely not an idiot. If I remember correctly, you have a talent for Charms."

Tracey smiled. "Yeah, I guess I do. So why are you up so early?"

"Dreading the match," Evanna replied simply. Tracey seemed to recall Draco boasting at the Slytherin table about his father buying his way onto the team, which was very stupid in Tracey's opinion. Now that the whole Slytherin team was equipped with far faster brooms than the Gryffindors, she could see why Evanna would be dreading Quidditch later. "How bout you?"

"The majority of my house are idiots, need I say more?" Tracey said, giggling along with Evanna.

"I think I'm gonna go get some breakfast now," Evanna said. "Join me?"

Tracey nodded her head, thinking of how she couldn't possibly get any less respect from her peers. The two second-years set off towards the Great Hall together, chatting happily. Once they arrived, they split to go to their respective tables, but not before giving each other friendly waves.

Daphne's mouth was hanging open when Tracey sat next to her, giving Tracey a clear view of her porridge. "Daph, ew!" Tracey complained, shoving her friend playfully. Then she raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You were just talking with Evanna Potter!" Daphne cried, waving her arms around dramatically.

"Yeah, she's really nice," Tracey said. "She totally doesn't judge Slytherins at all, saying that Draco was just an idiot and that we weren't all bad, which is so true! I think we're actually friends now."

Daphne just stared at her friend. "You have no idea how much I envy you right now."

"Next time, I'll introduce you," Tracey said with a wink.

Meanwhile, over at the Gryffindor table, a completely different conversation was taking place. "What were you doing, fraternizing with the enemy?!" Oliver asked angrily as Evanna sat down.

"Enemy?" Evanna asked as she grabbed some bacon.

"Yeah, that girl was a Slytherin!" Katie piped up, with a glare very similar to Oliver's.

Evanna looked at the older students in shock. "You don't honestly think that all Slytherins are bad, do you?"

"Name some that aren't," Alicia dared.

"Well that girl for one, her name's Tracey Davis and she's really nice — "

"Evanna, she could've just been pretending to be nice to pry information out of you!" Oliver cried. "She might just want to learn our new techniques!"

"I can't believe you!" Evanna yelled, standing up angrily. "You can't just assume that all Slytherins are bad! You can't believe all of those stereotypes! Ugh!" Evanna stomped off, obviously angry.

"Nice one, Oliver, you've gone and pissed our Seeker," Fred muttered. He grabbed up a plate of food and motioned for his twin to follow him. "Come on, George. Let's convince Evanna to still play the game today."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oliver watched apprehensively as Evanna entered the locker room behind Fred and George, clad in her scarlet Quidditch uniform, holding the plate of food that Fred had given her. She was munching slowly on a piece of bacon that was sticking out of her mouth. When she caught Oliver's eye, she turned away, sitting next to George on a bench. Oliver sighed; Evanna was far too nice. If only she could see it from his point of view! Ignoring the guilt that was rising steadily in his chest, he began his pre-match pep talk.

"Slytherin has better brooms than us," he began. "No point denying it. But we've got better people on our brooms. We've trained harder than they have, we've been flying in all weathers —" (he ignored George's muttering here) "— and we're going to make them rue the day they let that little bit of slime, Malfoy, buy his way onto their team."

He turned to Evanna, who looked up at him but didn't meet his eye. "It'll be down to you, Evanna, to show them that a Seeker has to have something more than a rich father. Get to that Snitch before Malfoy or die trying, Evanna, because we've got to win today, we've got to."

Evanna gave Oliver a cold nod, but then gave Fred a slight smile at his comment, "So no pressure, Vanna."

Evanna marched out onto the field with the rest of the team, refusing to meet Wood's eye. He was being idiotically biased! Her eyes fell instead upon a brown-haired girl waving to her from the Slytherin section. Evanna smiled and waved back at Tracey before mounting her broom.

As soon as Madam Hooch blew her whistle, Evanna flew skywards, faster and higher than any of the other players. Her green eyes were mere slits as she squinted around the arena for any signs of gold in the air.

"All right there, Scarhead?" yelled Malfoy, who flew around purely in the intent of showing off the speed of his broom. Evanna rolled her eyes; was _that_ really his best insult?

She noticed a heavy black ball speeding towards her. She barely dodged it; the tip of her braid ended up being hit so hard that the elastic came off. She gulped, quickly catching the elastic in the air and replacing it in her hair. That was _way_ too close.

Suddenly, the very same Bludger was heading for her again. Evanna dropped quickly and looked wildly around. She had seen George hit that Bludger at Pucey! She watched as he aimed it this time at Malfoy, who looked just as confused as she was when it merely came pelting back towards her.

On instinct, Evanna flew away from it in a burst of speed towards the other end of the pitch. "What's going on?" she called to Fred, who was readying his bat.

"No idea!" he yelled back, his bat slamming hard into the Bludger, which turned momentarily the other direction, then continued to tail Evanna. It had started to rain, but this didn't prevent the Bludger's insistent stalking of the young Seeker.

"I think it likes me!" she said in a mock cheery voice, smiling at Fred and George, who had taken place on either side of her at this point. They were so close that she would have no chance of even seeing the Snitch, let alone catching it.

"Someone's — tampered — with — this — Bludger — " Fred grunted as he hit the fixed Bludger away again.

"No, you think?" Evanna asked sardonically.

"We need time out," said George, trying to signal to Wood and stop the Bludger breaking Evanna's nose at the same time.

Wood had obviously got the message. Madam Hooch's whistle rang out and Evanna, Fred, and George dived for the ground, still trying to avoid the mad Bludger.

"What's going on?" said Wood as the Gryffindor team huddled together, while Slytherins in the crowd jeered. "We're being flattened. Fred, George, where were you when that Bludger stopped Angelina scoring?"

"We were twenty feet above her, stopping the other Bludger from murdering Evanna, Oliver," said George angrily. "Someone's fixed it — it won't leave Evanna alone. It hasn't gone for anyone else all game."

"The Slytherins must have done something to it," Wood cried instantly, glaring over at the Slytherin team.

"But the Bludgers have been locked in Madam Hooch's office since our last practice, and there was nothing wrong with them then!" Evanna said, remembering the surprise on Malfoy's face when the Bludger had started chasing her. "Why do you always assume it's the Slytherins?"

"Who else is likely to have done that then?!" Wood retorted.

"I don't know! Someone who doesn't like me much! Or someone who wants me to get seriously injured! Imagine if I was injured so badly that I had to be sent . . . away . . . Wait a second . . ." Evanna trailed off, her eyes going comically wide. Who was it that had wanted Evanna to stay away from Hogwarts? " _Dobby_ ," she hissed, her eyes narrowing at the thought of the house-elf.

A new thought suddenly struck her. "Listen," said Evanna, "with you two flying around me all the time the only way I'm going to catch the Snitch is if it flies up my sleeve. Go back to the rest of the team and let me deal with the rogue one."

" _Don't be thick_!" exclaimed Fred. "It'll take your head off."

Wood was looking from Evanna to the Weasleys, obviously contemplating this request.

"Oliver, this is insane," said Alicia angrily. "You can't let Evanna deal with that thing on her own. Let's ask for an inquiry — "

"If we stop now, we'll have to forfeit the match!" said Evanna. "And we're not losing to Slytherin just because of a crazy Bludger! Come on, Oliver, tell them to leave me alone!"

"This is all your fault," George said angrily to Wood. "'Get the Snitch or die trying,' what a _stupid_ thing to tell her — "

Madam Hooch joined them then. "Ready to resume play?" she asked Wood.

Wood looked at Evanna. She was looking him directly in the eyes, a determined look on her face. He could see in her bright green eyes that she was completely serious about this. He could also see that she was setting aside all of her anger at him for this moment.

"All right," he said. "Fred, George, you heard Evanna — leave her alone and let her deal with the Bludger on her own."

Evanna could see the worry in the twins' identical blue eyes, and she squeezed both of their hands reassuringly. "I'll be fine. I am, after all, the girl who _lived_ , not died." The twins managed small grins at her joke, but couldn't help but worry for their best friend.

Evanna shot back up into the air, the Bludger once again on her heels. She did all the maneuvers she could think of, and once managed to get the Bludger to hit a Slytherin player. It was beginning to get tiring though, and she was running out of ways to dodge. At least the heavy Bludger couldn't make the sharp turns that she could.

"Training for the ballet, Potter?" yelled Malfoy as Evanna was forced to do a stupid kind of twirl in midair to dodge the Bludger.

"Is that the best insult you could come up with?" Evanna asked over the wind, turning her head to look at Malfoy. "Or are you just — " Evanna gasped.

_The Golden Snitch was floating right by Malfoy's ear!_

Malfoy hadn't noticed as he was too busy laughing at the silly dodges Evanna was forced to make. Speaking of making dodges, Evanna suddenly jolted out of her shock when the rogue Bludger collided into her elbow. She heard the sickening snap of breaking bones and her broom fell a few inches in the air at her lost focus. But at the moment, she couldn't care less. Her mind had switched over to one thought, and that was getting to Malfoy.

She flew at him like a rocket, Bludger in hot pursuit. He gave a gasp and swerved out of her way, obviously under the impression that she was attacking him. She couldn't keep the smirk off of her face as she reached out her good arm (now only holding on the broom with her knees) and closed her fingers around the cold ball.

Her smugness didn't last for long however, as she realized she couldn't properly steer her broom without her arms and she hit the ground hard, rolling off of her broom. She could vaguely hear her teammates landing around her and George asking how she was feeling.

"Ah, we won," was all she muttered before passing out in the Weasley twin's arms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tracey pushed her way through the crowd of Gryffindors around Evanna. "Is she all right?!" Tracey asked frantically, falling to her knees by Evanna's side.

"What's it to you?" the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain asked suspiciously.

"Evanna's nice. She's my friend. I'm worried about her. Is that some sort of crime?" Tracey snapped, glaring up at the burly Keeper, who had shut his mouth immediately.

"She's just fainted," said a boy beside Tracey (one of the infamous Weasley twins, but she didn't know which one), "but her arm's definitely broken."

"Nothing fatal," the other twin (who had Evanna's head in his lap) reassured her.

Tracey sighed in relief. "Thank Merlin! I think I should be going," she added, eyeing her friends who were waiting awkwardly off to the side, "but tell her I hope she gets well soon. It was nice meeting you!"

Oliver watched the Slytherin girl run off with her two other Slytherin friends. "Wow . . ." he muttered. "She wasn't mean at all . . ."

"Not all Slytherins are bad, y'know."

Oliver turned around to see a beautiful girl behind him, smiling slyly. Her sleek blonde hair fell down her back in waves and her chocolate brown eyes were heavenly. He could feel his jaw go slack. She just gestured to her silver and green tie, her smile never ceasing.

"I'm sorry," Oliver said, still staring at her with clear awe on his face.

She gave him a smirk, extending her slender hand slowly. "Amelia Trevor. And you are . . . ?"

Oliver took her hand and shook it, saying, "Oliver Wood. And again, I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Well, it will be if we can go to Hogsmeade together soon."

Oliver's face lit up. "Yeah! I mean, of course! So, see you then?"

"See you then," Amelia repeated, giving Oliver a wink as she disappeared into the crowd.

Oliver stared after her, with only one thought floating in his mind: _Slytherins aren't so bad after all . . ._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yay, meeting the non-bad Slytherins! Also, I liked giving Oliver a girl he liked who was in the house he hated :D And yeah, I know that I change from 'Oliver' to 'Wood' a lot, but it just depends on the situation. Like when Evanna was miffed at him, I used Wood and when it's from his POV kind of, I referred to him as Oliver.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	24. Bone Regrowth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 24: Bone Regrowth
> 
> A/N: Hellllo everybody! Yay, here's a fast update for you all! So, I'm glad you all liked the last chapter. I hope this one is okay. Also, if you want, check out my tumblr? Or my deviantart? You know, if you like the stuff I write :P Thanks for reading!

Evanna awoke to shouting.

"No! She needs Madam Pomfrey!"

She recognized this voice as George. She also realized that her head was on his lap.

"But I know the perfect spell to fix her arm — "

Aaaand _that_ was Lockhart. _Oh joy._

Evanna opened her eyes, and cautiously pushed herself into a sitting position using her good arm. Lockhart immediately dropped to her side and George scooched closer to her. She shifted to try to face George, but the slight movement made her cringe. She glanced down at her broken arm.

"Could someone help me to the Hospital Wing?" she asked, glancing around at the small crowd.

"Not to worry, Evanna. I'm about to fix your arm," Lockhart said, pulling out his wand.

"No!" exclaimed Evanna. "I'll keep it like this, thanks . . ." She suddenly heard a familiar clicking noise nearby. "I don't want a photo of this, Colin," she added loudly.

"Lie back, Evanna," said Lockhart soothingly. "It's a simple charm I've used countless times —"

"Why can't I just go to the hospital wing?" asked Evanna, with a small groan.

"She should really, Professor," said a muddy Wood, who couldn't help grinning even though his Seeker was injured. He looked slightly lovestruck if you asked Evanna. "Great capture, Evanna, really spectacular, your best yet, I'd say — " Ah, so he was just in love with her catch. _Nice._

Glancing through the mass of legs, Evanna could make out Fred, with the help of the three Chaser girls, struggling to put the rogue Bludger back in the box. If it was able to keep three fit and athletic Gryffindors from imprisoning it, Evanna hated to think of what would have happened if it had hit her in the head . . .

"Stand back," said Lockhart, who was rolling up his jade-green sleeves.

"No — don't — " said Evanna weakly, but Lockhart was twirling his wand and a second later had directed it straight at Evanna's arm.

Evanna had squeezed her eyes tight shut, but that didn't keep her from getting the strange sensation of her arm being deflated. She could hear people gasping and Colin taking hundreds of pictures. Her arm didn't even feel vaguely like an arm anymore.

"Ah," she heard Lockhart say nervously. "Yes. Well, that can sometimes happen. But the point is, the bones are no longer broken. That's the thing to bear in mind. So, Evanna, just toddle up to the hospital wing — ah, Mr. Weasley, would you escort her? — and Madam Pomfrey will be able to — er — tidy you up a bit."

"Do I want to know?" Evanna asked, without opening her eyes.

She heard George gulp. "Uh, no, but you probably should . . ."

Evanna slowly opened one eye and peered at her right arm. Her eyes both popped open in horror. Her arm hung limply at her side, vaguely recognizable. All her attempts at moving it failed. She finally resorted to picking it up with her other hand and letting it flop back to her side.

Lockhart had _removed_ all the bones in her arm.

George grabbed her up in his arms and began to carry her towards the Hospital Wing, with Ron and Hermione scurrying to follow. Evanna gave George a look. "I can still walk y'know."

George gave her a slight smirk. "I know, that's what makes this even more fun."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Madam Pomfrey glanced up to see George Weasley (she had visits from those twins enough to tell them apart) carrying a very perturbed Evanna Potter in his arms, with a worried looking Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger following close behind. What worried Madam Pomfrey most was the state of Evanna's right arm. It flapped around pointlessly, and vaguely resembled a flesh-coloured rubber glove.

"What happened?" she asked, as she looked admonishingly from George to Evanna.

"Lockhart happened," Evanna seethed. "He took out all of the bones in my arm!" She held up her arm for Madam Pomfrey to see.

Madam Pomfrey took Evanna's arm and examined it reproachfully. "That idiot of a man," she muttered, letting Evanna's arm drop to her side once again. "I can mend bones in a second — but growing them back — "

"You will be able to, won't you?" Evanna asked, looking nervous.

"I'll be able to, certainly, but it will be painful," said Madam Pomfrey grimly, throwing Evanna a pair of pajamas. "You'll have to stay the night . . ."

"Fantastic," Evanna muttered sarcastically. She closed the curtains around a bed, allowing only Hermione to enter, so she could help her with her pajamas, considering she only had one working arm.

"Who do you think tampered with that Bludger, if not the Slytherins?" George asked from the other side of the curtain.

"Wait, why don't you think it's the Slytherins?" Ron asked, also on the other side of the curtain. "I mean, who else would do it?"

"I think," Evanna said, pulling the curtain aside with her good arm (being all dressed), "it was Dobby."

George tried to hide a groan. "The house-elf who tried to stop you from going to Hogwarts? I thought we agreed that he was just sent by somebody as a prank!"

Evanna knew that Fred and George hadn't believed that the house-elf had actually come of his own free will to keep her from returning to Hogwarts. They had given the argument that house-elves needed permission to leave their house and use magic, so that Dobby had simply been sent by Evanna's enemy, Draco Malfoy. But Evanna didn't think so. Draco might stoop low, but not _that_ low.

"Look, it makes sense! Dobby was trying to keep me away from Hogwarts! If I had been seriously injured, I would've been sent away to St. Mungo's like you were last year, George. _And_ ," Evanna continued, with a sudden burst of inspiration, "the entrance to the platform closed on me and Ron the beginning of the school year, remember? Dobby was trying to keep me away! When that didn't work, he tried to get me to go anywhere but here. The only question is why . . ."

" _Evanna_ . . ." George sighed with exasperation, but said nothing else, as Madam Pomfrey came up, holding a large bottle labeled _Skele-Gro_.

"You're in for a rough night," she said, pouring out a steaming beakerful and handing it to Evanna. "Regrowing bones is a nasty business."

Evanna began to choke. The Skele-Gro burned her throat. George sat next to her on the bed, patting her on the back, trying to help her down the foul potion. Ron passed her a cup of water, which she quickly swallowed.

Massaging her throat, Evanna muttered quietly, mostly to herself, "I hope that Polyjuice Potion tastes better than this."

George gave her a strange look, which she ignored as she greeted the wet and muddy Gryffindor team, who were filing into the room to talk with her.

They had brought her lots of sweets and were talking about her amazing catch, when Madam Pomfrey came storming over, shouting, "This girl needs rest, she's got thirty-three bones to regrow! Out! OUT!"

Evanna waved to her friends, leaving her with only the stabbing pains that had started in her arm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I _knew_ it! It was _you_!" Evanna pointed an accusing finger at Dobby the house-elf. " _You_ closed the barrier and fixed that Bludger!"

The creature bent his head guiltily. "Right on all counts, miss. Dobby only thought, miss, that he might be able to get you to go home . . ." He looked up at her pleadingly. "Evanna Potter _must_ heed Dobby's warnings! Evanna Potter _must_ go home! Evanna Potter is in danger at Hogwarts!"

Evanna merely let out a huff of annoyance. "Get out of here before my bones regrow, Dobby, or else I might accidentally _strangle_ you . . ."

Dobby smiled weakly. "Dobby is used to death threats, miss. Dobby gets them five times a day at home."

He blew his nose on a corner of the filthy pillowcase he wore, looking so pathetic that Evanna felt suddenly sympathetic towards the creature.

"Why d'you wear that thing, Dobby?" she asked curiously.

"This, miss?" said Dobby, plucking at the pillowcase. "'Tis a mark of the house-elf's enslavement, miss. Dobby can only be freed if his masters present him with clothes, miss. The family is careful not to pass Dobby even a sock, miss, for then he would be free to leave their house forever." Dobby added suddenly, "Evanna Potter must go home! Dobby thought his Bludger would be enough to make — "

"Why'd you make that Bludger try to kill me anyway, Dobby?" Evanna asked, with anger rising in her voice.

"Not kill you, miss, never kill you!" said Dobby, shocked. "Dobby wants to save Evanna Potter's life! Better sent home, grievously injured, than remain here, miss! Dobby only wanted Evanna Potter hurt enough to be sent home!"

"I wouldn't have been sent home," Evanna said. "I would've been sent to St. Mungo's. But that doesn't change the facts that you want me home in pieces! Any valid reasons why?"

"Ah, if Evanna Potter only knew!" Dobby groaned, more tears dripping onto his ragged pillowcase. "If she knew what she means to us, to the lowly, the enslaved, we dregs of the magical world! Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, miss! We house-elves were treated like vermin, miss! Of course, Dobby is still treated like that, miss," he admitted, drying his face on the pillowcase. Evanna felt sympathy for him. "But mostly, miss, life has improved for my kind since you triumphed over He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Evanna Potter survived, and the Dark Lord's power was broken, and it was a new dawn, miss, and Evanna Potter shone like a beacon of hope for those of us who thought the Dark days would never end, miss . . . And now, at Hogwarts, terrible things are to happen, are perhaps happening already, and Dobby cannot let Evanna Potter stay here now that history is to repeat itself, now that the Chamber of Secrets is open once more — "

Dobby froze, horrorstruck, then grabbed Evanna's water jug from her bedside table and cracked it over his own head, toppling out of sight. A second later, he crawled back onto the bed, cross-eyed, muttering, "Bad Dobby, very bad Dobby . . ."

"So there _is_ a Chamber of Secrets?" Evanna whispered. "And — did you say it's been opened _before_? Tell me, Dobby! Please!" She seized the elf's bony wrist as Dobby's hand inched toward the water jug. "But I'm not Muggle-born — how can I be in danger from the Chamber?"

"Ah, miss, ask no more, ask no more of poor Dobby," stammered the elf, his eyes huge in the dark. "Dark deeds are planned in this place, but Evanna Potter must not be here when they happen — go home, Evanna Potter, go home. Evanna Potter must not meddle in this, miss, 'tis too dangerous — "

"Who's opened it? Who opened it last time?" Evanna said, keeping a firm hold on Dobby's wrist to stop him from hitting himself with the water jug again. "Dobby, please tell me!"

"Dobby can't, miss, Dobby can't, Dobby mustn't tell!" squealed the elf. "Go home, Evanna Potter, go home!"

"I'm not going anywhere!" said Evanna fiercely. "One of my best friends is Muggle-born; she'll be first in line if the Chamber really has been opened — "

"Evanna Potter risks her own life for her friends!" moaned Dobby in a kind of miserable ecstasy. "So noble! So valiant! But she must save herself, she must, Evanna Potter must not — "

Dobby suddenly froze, his bat ears quivering. Evanna heard it, too. There were footsteps coming down the passageway outside.

"Dobby must go!" breathed the elf, terrified. There was a loud crack, and Evanna's fist was suddenly clenched on thin air.

Evanna slid back under her covers, looking over at the dark doorway. She watched as Dumbledore entered, carrying someone's head. Professor McGonagall was carrying their feet. What scared Evanna most was this person was being absolutely still, like a statue. Or someone who was petrified.

Evanna pretended to be asleep as Madam Pomfrey bustled over to the teachers. She had a sharp intake of breath when she saw the person. "What happened?"

"Another attack," said Dumbledore. "Minerva found him on the stairs."

"There was a bunch of grapes next to him," said Professor McGonagall. "We think he was trying to sneak up here to visit Potter."

Evanna suddenly felt a horrible feeling of dread wash over her. Who would sneak out at night to visit her? The only one who came to mind was her own personal fanboy, Colin Creevey. Raising herself up a few inches so she could see his face, she saw that she was right. Colin was staring up with wide eyes, holding his camera out in front of him.

Evanna fell back onto her pillows, feeling horrified. Someone needed to find out who had opened the Chamber, and it looked like it was going to be her. She just hoped that Malfoy had some answers for them . . .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What's Polyjuice Potion?"

Fred looked over at his twin brother strangely. "Why do you ask?"

"Evanna was talking about it," George muttered, staring at the canopy over his bed. "She's going to be drinking it at some point. I've never heard of it though."

"Hm. Can't say I have either. Say, Forge?"

George turned his head to face Fred. "Yeah?"

"Didn't you say something about those three getting a signature from Lockhart for a book in the _restricted section_?"

"Yes . . . I did . . ." A smile crept across George's face. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Gred?"

"Do you need to ask, Forge?"

George's smile just grew wider.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: What do you think the twins are going to do? Heheheh . . . ;)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	25. From the Point of View of the Infamous Weasley Twins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 25: From the Point of View of the Infamous Weasley Twins
> 
> A/N: that long chapter title tho XD anyways, as I promised in my poll, I POSTED SOME FANART FOR THIS STORY! CHECK OUT MY DEVIANTART AND MY TUMBLR FOR SOME (hopefully) COOL FANART! I have very little posted right now, especially on my tumblr, but the more you guys request and like and favourite and reblog and ask and follow and watch and everything, the more I'll post! Feel free to request certain scenes too! And feel free to make fanart too, if you want! Give me the link so I could see it :D Thank you for reading!

Fred raised an eyebrow as he examined the Marauder's Map with George. Both Hermione _and Ron_ were in the _Girls'_ Bathroom. _Moaning Myrtle's bathroom no less!_

"Should I be worried?" he asked, glancing up at his twin.

"A little bit, yeah," George said. "But the only thing is they must have the book with them . . . It wasn't in Hermione's dorm, or Ron's."

"Great. What do you propose, Georgie? Wait for another time, or try to nick it now?"

"Well, how would we nick it _now_? They're obviously pouring over it — _Incoming_! Evanna Potter about to turn the corner!"

Fred shoved the map away with a hasty, "Mischief Managed" just as Evanna came around the corner, her arm fully healed. Her face lit up when she saw the twins, and she pulled them into a tight hug, oblivious to the relieved looks that the boys shared.

"Vanna! Your arm's all healed up! Fantastic!" Fred said, after the young girl released them.

"Yeah, and you'll never guess what happened last night!" Evanna said. "I had a visitor: Dobby the House-Elf. Turns out that I was right. It _was_ him. He tampered with that Bludger and stopped the barrier from letting me and Ron through.

"And," Evanna continued, lowering her voice and ignoring George's embarrassed look, "after Dobby left, I saw that Colin Creevey had been petrified!"

"Oh no, really?" Fred asked, with horror in his voice. If these attacks continued, who knew what would happen? And so many of their friends were Muggle-borns . . .

"Yeah, say, have you two seen Ron and Hermione?" Evanna asked. "I was expecting a party . . ."

The twins gave nervous laughs. They _did_ know where Ron and Hermione were, but if they told Evanna, she'd ask how they knew.

"Er, last we saw . . ." Fred began, with no idea what he was going to say.

"They were in the corridor where Mrs. Norris was attacked!" George jumped in, always the quick thinker of the two. Fred shot his twin a grateful look. "In fact, it almost looked as if they were heading for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, but they couldn't have been because Ron isn't a girl."

"Right," Evanna muttered, realizing that this was _exactly_ where they were. They must've started the Polyjuice Potion already. She waved goodbye to the twins and scurried off to find her friends.

"Close one," Fred said, whipping out the Marauder's Map again, muttering, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

"You can say that again," George agreed, looking over his twin's shoulder. "Look, she's heading towards the bathroom now too. What do you think they're doing in there?"

"Maybe making that potion — what was it called? — Polyjuice Potion," Fred suggested. "I mean, they were being all secretive about it, so it's obviously not for Potions Class."

"So what should we do?" George asked. "We can't just go in there and look over their shoulders!"

Fred's eyes suddenly lit up. "Maybe we can!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe we're doing this," George muttered.

"Don't be such a pansy!" Fred retorted. "This way we can actually figure out what those prats are up to!"

George chewed the inside of his cheek, wondering how angry Evanna would be if she found them. Fred had nicked Evanna's invisibility cloak from her dorm, and now the two fourth-years were underneath it, with the Marauder's Map, going towards Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. They were right behind Evanna now, following her through the bathroom door. George just hoped that they wouldn't get caught.

Fred pulled George off to one side as Evanna was tackled in hugs from Ron and Hermione. The trio began to talk, mostly about Evanna's arm and how Colin had been petrified, so the twins edged over to a small cauldron that was bubbling on the floor, which Hermione and Ron had just been circled around. Fred wrinkled his nose; it looked disgusting. George nudged him, pointing to an open book by the cauldron. Fred felt sick.

The page was decorated with people looking like they were experiencing excruciating pain as they transformed into another person entirely. Fred felt most disturbed at a picture of a half full-grown man, half young girl. So that was what Polyjuice Potion was. But why were these three second-years trying to transform into someone else?

George nudged his brother, pointing back towards the trio, whose conversation topic had changed to the Chamber of Secrets.

"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened _before_?" Hermione was asking, looking horrified.

"This settles it," said Ron in a triumphant voice. "Lucius Malfoy must've opened the Chamber when he was at school here and now he's told dear old Draco how to do it. It's obvious. Wish Dobby had told you what kind of monster's in there, though. I want to know how come nobody's noticed it sneaking around the school."

Fred and George exchanged glances. They thought that the Heir of Slytherin was _Malfoy_? Sure, he was a complete tosser, but was he really the one who had been petrifying Muggle-borns and cats?

"Maybe it can make itself invisible," Hermione suggested, returning to the cauldron. "Or maybe it can disguise itself — pretend to be a suit of armor or something — I've read about Chameleon Ghouls — "

"You read too much, Hermione," Ron interjected, pouring dead lacewings on top of the leeches that Hermione had just added to the potion.

Fred and George backed away slowly towards the door, trying to get out while the trio were distracted. Unfortunately, Fred backed into something and let out a swear word. The trio looked around wildly, trying to find the intruder.

Evanna suddenly narrowed her eyes and stood up walking towards Fred and George. The twins cringed as she reached up and swept the invisibility cloak off of them in one flourishing movement. Both twins swore this time.

"Fred! George! _What_ do you think you're you doing?" Evanna asked angrily, hands on her hips.

"What could you _possibly_ mean, Evanna?" Fred asked with an air of innocence.

"You know perfectly well what she means, Frederick!" Hermione snapped, also standing up and glaring up at him. She waved her arms around with annoyance. "You're just so idiotic!"

"Oh, you think so, do you, Granger?" Fred growled, taking a threatening step towards Hermione.

George stepped between them, saying, "Oi, before we have World War Three on our hands . . ."

"So why're you two here?" Ron asked, with interest in his voice.

"Well, we noticed you two in this corridor," George began, remembering what he had told Evanna, "and we told Evanna that. We could tell that she knew what you two were up to, so we nicked her cloak and followed her in here."

"Now answer me a question, why're you three making Polyjuice Potion?" Fred asked, still glowering at Hermione.

"We're trying to figure out who the Heir of Slytherin is," Hermione responded, with an equally angry glare. "We think it _might_ be Draco Malfoy, so we're Polyjuicing as three Slytherins so that we can get some information out of him."

Fred let out a snort. "Do you _honestly_ think that Malfoy is smart enough to let a monster loose in the school? _He missed the Snitch when it was by his fricking head!_ " Fred waved his arms to emphasise his point, still glaring around his twin at Hermione.

"Well, we won't know until we talk to him, will we?" Hermione huffed, turning away from the Weasley twin, her face red with anger.

"Children, please," George said, pulling Fred a bit farther away from the young bookworm.

"Listen, this is our idea," Evanna said. "You two can't get involved, okay?"

The twins hungs their heads in mock guilt. "Okay."

Evanna rolled her eyes. "Now get out of here, and put my cloak back, would you?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George jumped out from behind a statue, yelling his head off. Ginny screamed and frankly, George didn't blame her. He and Fred had been taking turns jumping out at her, covered in either fur or boils (he was covered in fur right now). Of course, they were doing this in efforts to cheer her up (George would use air quotes around 'cheer her up'), because she had been very upset about Colin's petrification.

" _Ouch_!" George backed away from his younger sister, who had just hit him.

"If I knew any good hexes, I would hex you!" Ginny cried. "And Fred too! Stop jumping out at me!"

Suddenly, Fred jumped out from behind another statue, covering in boils, yelling, " _Ogaboogabooga_!"

Ginny let out yet another cry of fright, attracting the attention of, not only Evanna Potter and her crew, but Percy the Prefect too.

" _What do you think you two are doing_?!" Percy asked, with fury in his voice.

"Cheering Ginny up," George said innocently. Evanna rolled her eyes.

" _You two idiots_!" Hermione cried angrily. "Can't you see you're _scaring_ her?!"

"We were _not_ scaring her — " Fred retorted.

"I'm not scared!" Ginny protested.

"See?"

"Come off it," Ron said. "You were scared out of your wits!"

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"You two had better stop scaring Ginny ("I was _not_ scared!") Or else!" Percy shouted over all of the other shouts.

Evanna looked around at everyone. Fred was in a heated argument with Hermione (those two were actually kind of cute), likewise Ron was arguing with Ginny, and Percy was shouting at George (and Fred, who wasn't listening). Evanna rolled her eyes and shouted, "SHUT IT!"

The corridor was suddenly quiet, with everyone staring at her. "Thank you," Evanna said. "Now one at a time, please."

"Listen," Percy said, grabbing the opportunity, "you two have to stop doing that, or I'll write to Mum and say that you've been giving Ginny nightmares!"

"But they haven't been — "

"Quiet, Ginny!"

"Fine," the twins muttered and, with a simple wave of their wands, they were boil and fur free.

"Now all of you go off the class," Percy ordered, and everyone obeyed, too tired of arguing to complain.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ever since the twins had been caught snooping by Evanna, she, Ron, and Hermione had been sure to keep their distance. They never discussed their Polyjuice plans in public, not even quietly, and they always looked over their shoulders to be sure that the two fourth-years weren't nearby. Fred said good riddance to it.

"I'm just glad that Granger and Ron are out of our way," Fred had reassured his brother, when George had mentioned that he missed talking to Evanna. "I mean, they're really annoying. Granger especially."

"You two fight like an old married couple, you know that?" George asked, earning a glare from Fred.

"Do not," Fred muttered. "We're not even friends!"

"But you fight like you are," George said, ignoring Fred's second glare.

And thus, the twins stopped following the trio around. But they still wanted to help, so they kept their ears and eyes open wide. A couple of weeks into December, they found just the opportunity they had been waiting for.

"Forge!"

"Yeah?"

Fred ran up to his twin, with a look of glee on his face. "I discovered something about the trio's plan!"

"Oh, do tell!" George said, grinning excitedly.

"They're going to be using their Polyjuice during Christmas holidays, so the three of them are staying over the break," Fred said.

George's smile widened. "I think we might need to stay over the break too, Gred."

"Yeah, I have a bit of work to catch up on," Fred said, with a grin that matched George's perfectly. "We better go tell McGonagall."

"Yes, let's," George agreed, but before they could go tell their Transfiguration teacher, Evanna came up to them, surprising them both.

"Hey!" she said cheerily, smiling up at them. The twins just eyed her suspiciously; why was she suddenly talking to them as if she hadn't been avoiding them for weeks? Evanna just rolled her eyes at their matching suspicious expressions. "Okaaaaay, anyways, I need to ask if I could borrow some fireworks, Fred."

"Why?" Fred asked, failing to keep the suspicion out of his voice.

"Uh, do I need a reason?" Evanna asked, hands on her hips in annoyance. "If you don't want to give me some, fine, just say so — "

"It's fine, I'll get you some," Fred sighed, giving in to the young girl, and ran up the stairs to the fourth-year boys' dormitories.

"What are you three up to, Potter?" George asked, looking down at the redhead.

"Only innocent things, I'm sure, Weasley," Evanna replied, a completely calm expression on her face (though George saw her lips curve upwards for a few moments there).

Fred returned and handed a couple of fireworks to Evanna. "Thank you, Fred," Evanna said. "Bye, boys!"

As they watched her skip innocently away, Fred said, "That girl is going to be the death of us."

George couldn't help but agree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, a chapter fully from the POV of the Weasley Twins! How did you like it? And please check out some of my fanart!
> 
> Please review and check out my fanart (and show me some of your own)! ~Jayce


	26. Dueling Club

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 26: Dueling Club (For Lack of a More Creative Title)
> 
> A/N: Thank you all for reading, and thank you guest Anne for that lovely review, but I must politely disagree with you :) it's not plagiarism, as I claim no right to anything that belongs to J.K. Rowling. Happy Reading!

Evanna was confronted by the twins the very next day. She put on her poker face when she saw their smirks.

"Why did you use my firework to blow up a swelling solution?" Fred asked. "You of all people should know better than to piss off Snape."

"I'm not sure what you're talking about," Evanna replied coolly, swinging her bag over one shoulder and walking around the two. She didn't get far, as Fred stepped in front of her yet again. She gave him an annoyed look, putting her hands on her hips. "Look, Fred, I have to go — "

"Where?" Fred pressed. "To make Polyjuice Potion? Or set off another firework?"

"Just shut up!" Evanna hissed glancing around to make sure no one had overheard. "Look, you two can't keep meddling with this stuff!"

"Why not? We're older, which means we're wiser, and not to mention braver — "

"Ha! Don't make me laugh!"

"Okay, but you have to admit that we're definitely the safest people to get involved, since we don't care about the punishment and we wouldn't tell anybody for anything," George pointed out.

"Exactly why I'm not going to let you get involved!" Evanna cried, tears forming in her eyes. She looked away, sniffling as Fred and George exchanged glances. "You don't care about the consequence, you'll just get hurt!"

"Oh, I get it," George said quietly. "You still blame yourself about last year."

"Who am I supposed to blame?!" Evanna asked, rubbing her eyes harshly.

"How about Quirrell?" Fred suggested. "It really was his fault that you asked us to go watch over the offices, and even more his fault that George was hurt."

"I guess," Evanna sniffed. "But I still don't want you two getting involved. Just don't. Please."

The twins sighed at Evanna's pleading look. "Fine. But if you need help, we will always be there for you," George said, looking Evanna in the eyes seriously. Her eyes went slightly wide at his serious expression and she watched the twins walk away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A dueling club would've been a fantastic idea; had it been set by a competent teacher. Evanna watched with a look of complete displeasure as Lockhart swept onto the stage, teeth glittering in a large smile as he scanned the many anxious faces around him. She found it hard to believe that he could smile with Snape in such a near proximity to him.

"Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me? Excellent!" Lockhart called over the hubbub of the crowd, immediately captivating the attention of everyone in the hall.

"Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions — for full details, see my published works.

"Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape. He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want any of you youngsters to worry — you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!"

Evanna watched in mild amusement as Lockhart and Snape moved the opposite ends of the stage, bowing to each other. Well, Snape gave a curt nod of his head and Lockhart gave an exaggerated dip, waving his arms around far too much. They then stood in a defensive stance, with their wands out in front of them like swords.

"As you see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position," Lockhart told the silent crowd. "On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course."

Evanna glanced surreptitiously over at Snape, but said nothing.

"One — two — three — "

Both teachers waved their wand and cried out a spell; or at least Snape did. Lockhart was too slow and the beam of red light that erupted from Snape's wand caught him in the chest, sending him flying backwards off the stage. His wand flew out of his hand and Lavender just managed to catch it.

"Is it bad that I hope he breaks his arm?" Evanna asked, glancing at her friends. Ron shook his head while Hermione nodded hers.

Lockhart's arm was (unfortunately) not broken; he shakily returned to his position onstage, flashing a wide smile out at the crowd, even while he looked quite disheveled.

"Well, there you have it!" he said. "That was a Disarming Charm — as you see, I've lost my wand — ah, thank you, Miss Brown — yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy — however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see . . ."

Snape's frown was even more murderous than usual at that comment, and perhaps Lockhart noticed, because he quickly announced, "Enough demonstrating! I'm going to come amongst you now and put you all into pairs. Professor Snape, if you'd like to help me — "

Evanna went pale as she saw Snape making a beeline for herself and Ron. She backed away quickly, hiding behind Fred and George (who sensibly hadn't stood too close to Evanna, Ron or Hermione). "Hey," she said with a nervous smile, her eyes following Snape as he paired Ron with Seamus and Hermione with a Slytherin girl that Evanna didn't know. The twins smiled back, just as Lockhart came by to pair them up.

"Ah yes, Potter! You and Weasley can pair up — ah I see, George Weasley then," Lockhart amended, once he realized that both twins were there. "Fred can pair with Jordan over there."

Both Fred and George seemed pleased with their pairings, so Fred ran off with Lee Jordan to duel and George and Evanna faced each other. George liked that Evanna was smiling widely.

"What spell should I use on you?" Evanna pondered aloud, tossing George a smirk. He merely raised an eyebrow, spell ideas already whizzing through his mind.

"Face your partners!" called Lockhart, back on the platform. "And bow!"

Evanna gave George a bow and so he did a messy curtsey. They both hid their laughter in their hands.

"Wands at the ready!" shouted Lockhart. "When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents — only to disarm them — we don't want any accidents — "

"Aw, I wanted to use Rictusempra," Evanna mumbled, readying her wand. George merely grinned at her mischievously.

"One . . . two . . . three — "

But before either of them had uttered a word, a fight had broken out between Hermione and her Slytherin partner, triggering the rest of the hall to forgot Lockhart's words about strictly disarming. Fights were breaking out everywhere and George pulled Evanna down so they would avoid a jinx.

" _I said disarm only_!"

Nobody seemed to pay Lockhart any mind as the battles got more intense. But thankfully Snape took charge.

" _Finite Incantatem_!"

Evanna and George slowly got to their feet, surveying the scene around them. Hazish green smoke was floating around the room, and Evanna guessed that the spell would terminate all effects of other spells in the vicinity. Both Neville and Justin were lying on the floor, panting; Ron was holding up an ashen-faced Seamus, apologizing for whatever his broken wand had done; but Hermione and the Slytherin girl were still moving; the Slytherin had Hermione in a headlock and Hermione was whimpering in pain; both their wands lay forgotten on the floor. Fred and Lee (who had been nearby) were working together to pry the Slytherin away from Hermione, and once they finally had, Fred crouched next to Hermione and seemed to be asking if she was alright. George smiled at the gesture of affection.

"Dear, dear," said Lockhart, skittering through the crowd, looking at the aftermath of the duels. "Up you go, Macmillan . . . Careful there, Miss Fawcett. . . . Pinch it hard, it'll stop bleeding in a second, Boot —

"I think I'd better teach you how to _block_ unfriendly spells," said Lockhart, standing flustered in the midst of the hall. He glanced at Snape, whose black eyes glinted, and looked quickly away. "Let's have a volunteer pair — Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you — "

"A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," said Snape, gliding over like a large and malevolent bat. "Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells. We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox." Neville's round, pink face went pinker. "How about Malfoy and Potter?" said Snape with a twisted smile.

"Excellent idea!" said Lockhart, gesturing Evanna and Malfoy into the middle of the hall as the crowd backed away to give them room.

Evanna groaned and reluctantly stood across from Malfoy. "Professor, I don't see how Neville will get any better if he doesn't learn," Evanna said sensibly. "I mean, I'll face him if you want, and I don't mind helping him — "

"Silence, Potter," Snape said. He then bent over and whispered something in Malfoy's ear; judging by Malfoy's widening smirk, it was something vile. Evanna readied herself, trying to remember the spell that Snape had used to disarm Lockhart earlier.

"Three — two — one — go!" Lockhart shouted, waving his arm to signal the start.

Before Evanna could do anything, Malfoy raised his wand and yelled, " _Serpensortia_!"

A long black snake burst from Malfoy's wand tip, readying itself to strike. Evanna didn't know what type of snake it was, so it being venomous was a scarily large possibility. The crowd was backing away from it, as did Evanna slightly. She was definitely not fond of snakes, especially if they were poisonous.

" _Alarte Ascendare_!"

Evanna bit her lip as Lockhart's spell caused the snake to be blasted at least ten feet in the air, landing in front of Justin Finch-Fletchley, hissing furiously. Justin was backing away slowly, but the snake was positioned to attack.

Instinctively, Evanna yelled, "No! Leave him alone!"

She shrank back in fear when the snake turned to her, but it didn't attack. It slumped over onto the floor, completely docile, and Evanna just stared at it. She didn't know why it had listened to her, but she somehow could tell that it had understood what she had said.

Raising her eyes to the uncommonly quiet crowd, all she could see were frightened stares. She caught the eyes of George and saw that he wasn't looking any different from the rest of the crowd; fearful and confused. Evanna felt tears prickling at the corners of her eyes.

"What do you think you're playing at?" Justin yelled angrily at Evanna, who shrunk back, looking scared and confused herself. Justin ran out of the hall without another word.

"I don't get it," Evanna said finally. "What's wrong?"

Nobody answered, but Evanna felt Ron and Hermione steer her out of the hall. They were looking worried, but not scared like everyone else had. Ron knew that Evanna would've told him if she had known, so he assumed that this was all new to her. He also knew that she would _never_ encourage that snake to attack _anyone_ , not even Malfoy (and that was saying something, considering how those two went at it).

Leading her back to the common room, Ron noticed that Fred and George were following them. It made sense, considering that they were Evanna's best friends too, but he couldn't help but feel betrayal at the fear in George's eyes. Didn't he realize that it was stupid to believe Evanna would actually egg the snake on?!

Evanna sat in an armchair, staring up at the four familiar and worried faces. "What was that all about?" Evanna asked quietly, not making eye contact with any of them. It hurt too much when she saw their fear. "Why was everyone so scared? I mean, I don't know why that snake listened to me when I told it to leave Justin alone, but — "

"Oh, is that what you said to it?" George asked, his voice shaking a bit. Evanna couldn't tell if it was anger or fear.

"You were there!" Evanna retorted.

"No, Evanna, we heard you speaking Parseltongue," Hermione said. "You know, snake language."

"No, I don't know!" Evanna cried, the stress starting to get to her.

"You're a Parselmouth. You can talk to snakes," Ron explained. He paused. "Did you know?"

"Well, I didn't know that it had a name, but I did set a boa constrictor on my cousin once," Evanna said, with a faint smile. "It was saying that it had never seen Brazil, and I accidentally set it loose. That was before I knew I was a witch of course — "

"A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?" Ron repeated faintly, looking pale.

"Well, it does sound a bit crazy when you say it out loud, doesn't it?" Evanna laughed. "Come on, I bet tons of people can do it — "

"No they can't," Fred said worriedly. "It's a really rare gift, Evanna. And, well, it was a trait of Salazar Slytherin, so — "

"People are going to think that I'm the Heir of Slytherin," Evanna finished. "Yeah, I guessed that. But really, _me_? The Heir of Slytherin? Since when have I ever been that — for lack of a better word — evil?"

"Well, you and Malfoy do go at it quite a lot," Hermione said.

"Plus, you can sometimes kind of explode when you're angry," Ron added.

"And don't forget that you were caught at the scene of the crime," Fred said teasingly.

"You also kind of _killed_ Quirrell and You-Know-Who. _Twice_ , for the latter," George said, but in a not at all teasing way.

Fred gave his twin a strange look and muttered, "Georgie? Why so bitter?"

George inhaled deeply, obviously trying to calm down. "Sorry," he replied, "just a bit stressed. I mean, I know as well as anyone that Evanna would never actually tell that snake to attack that Hufflepuff, but . . ." George ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know. Everything just points to her."

"George, I don't want us to be avoiding each other again," Evanna said, pleadingly.

George gave her a small smile. "I know. Me either. I'm sorry. Like I said, I'm just a bit stressed." Fred gave his twin another strange look, but didn't comment; he didn't understand why George was stressed.

"If it makes you feel better, you can make lots of jokes about me being the Heir of Slytherin," Evanna said, with a sly smile. She knew that the twins wouldn't be able to pass up an opportunity at getting some laughs. To her delight, George seemed to feel a little better after that.

"Evanna, are you all right?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Evanna asked, grinning.

"Well, you just — Nevermind." Hermione wondered how long Evanna's happy mood would last when she finally realized that everyone was _actually_ going to think that she was the Heir of Slytherin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Wow okay. I wasn't actually planning for George to be angsty, but oh well. I hope you liked it!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	27. Evanna the Heir

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 27: Evanna the Heir
> 
> A/N: So I was originally just going to have Parvati in Dumbledore's office with Evanna (I like having them bond :3), but then I made Vanna go unconscious, and Parvati wouldn't have been able to lift her alone, so I added George, which I think worked out in the end :) (What do you think?)
> 
> Oh, and to the guest who said: How come you are doing Fred and hermione I like hermione and Ron way better 
> 
> Well, I have nothing against Romione, they're pretty cute, but this is my story, not yours, and I am a hardcore Fremione shipper :) By all means, go make your own story and ship Romione (I'll even read it if you want!), but don't get angry with me for shipping what I want (and if you're not angry whatsoever, I'm sorry, you just kinda came off like that).
> 
> Anyways, Happy reading!

Hermione had been right about Evanna's happy attitude not lasting. The very next day, Evanna had begun fretting about Justin. "He thinks I actually meant to hurt him!" Evanna cried, her hands at the sides of her head in worry, as she paced in front of the fireplace. She had originally planning to let Justin know in Herbology, but the day had started off with a blizzard and the class had been cancelled.

Ron looked up from his wizard chess set, as Hermione contemplated her options of available moves. "Evanna, why don't you go look for Justin if it's so important to you?"

"Yeah, yeah okay," Evanna agreed, and she practically ran out of the common room.

"Do you think Justin will believe her?" Hermione asked nervously, after she moved her knight in an L shape across the board. "I mean, _anyone_ with _any_ common sense should, but she is looking rather suspicious."

Ron shrugged as he moved his bishop to take Hermione's knight, trying to appear nonchalant, but he looked just as nervous as Hermione did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna entered the library quickly, her green orbs doing a sweep of the room. She didn't see Justin, but she did see a couple of other Hufflepuffs in their year. Just as she was skipping towards them, her intent to ask where Justin was, she caught them saying her name. She bit her lip, but ducked behind a bookshelf to listen in. She couldn't help but notice that Parvati was a table over, and seemed to be listening in as well.

"So anyway," a stout boy was saying, "I told Justin to hide up in our dormitory. I mean to say, if Potter's marked him down as her next victim, it's best if he keeps a low profile for a while. Of course, Justin's been waiting for something like this to happen ever since he let slip to Potter he was Muggle-born. Justin actually _told_ her he'd been down for Eton. That's not the kind of thing you bandy about with Slytherin's heir on the loose, is it?"

"You definitely think it _is_ Evanna, then, Ernie?" a girl with blonde pigtails asked anxiously.

"Hannah," said the stout boy solemnly, "she's a Parselmouth. Everyone knows that's the mark of a Dark wizard. Have you ever heard of a decent one who could talk to snakes? They called Slytherin himself Serpent-tongue.

"Remember what was written on the wall? _Enemies of the Heir, Beware._ Potter had some sort of run-in with Filch. Next thing we know, Filch's cat's attacked. That first year, Creevey, was annoying Potter at the Quidditch match, taking pictures of her while she was lying in the mud. Next thing we know — Creevey's been attacked."

"She always seems so nice, though," said Hannah uncertainly, "and, well, she's the one who made You-Know-Who disappear. She can't be all bad, can she?"

Evanna had to edge closer to hear Ernie's next words, as he lowered his voice mysteriously. "No one knows how she survived that attack by You-Know-Who. I mean to say, she was only a baby when it happened. She should have been blasted into smithereens. Only a really powerful Dark wizard could have survived a curse like that." He dropped his voice until it was barely more than a whisper, and said, "That's probably why You-Know-Who wanted to kill her in the first place. Didn't want another Dark Lord competing with him. I wonder what other powers Potter's been hiding?"

"And what if 'Potter' hasn't been hiding anything?" came a new voice, and Evanna smiled at Parvati as she glared the Hufflepuffs down, standing up at her own table. "I _know_ Evanna, and she's _definitely_ not Slytherin's Heir."

"Thanks Parvati," Evanna said, stepping into view, surprising all of them. "And for your information, I was just looking for Justin to tell him that. But I'm not sure I want to anymore if all the Hufflepuffs are as biased as you are."

"I don't believe you're Slytherin's Heir, Evanna," Hannah spoke up, looking slightly nervous.

Evanna smiled softly. "Thanks Hannah. Hey Parvati," Evanna said, turning to the darker skinned witch, "you done here?"

"Yeah, I'm just about finished. I'll walk back to the common room with you if you want, Evanna," Parvati said, hesitating before slipping her arm through Evanna's. Evanna smiled, waved politely back at the Hufflepuffs (only receiving a wave in return from Hannah) and she and Parvati walked out of the library together.

"Parvati, I just want to thank you," Evanna said as they walked up a flight of stairs. "You have no idea what that vote of confidence means to me."

Parvati smiled. "Well, I know you can't possibly be the Heir of Slytherin. Lavender was concerned at first, until I pointed out that you were, well, _you_." The girls giggled as they turned a corner, but they weren't giggling for long.

Lying petrified on the floor was Justin, with an expression of shock on his face. But next to him was something Evanna hadn't thought possible. Nearly Headless Nick was floating there, completely immobile, but he was black and smoky instead of pearly-white and transparent. His head was half off and his face wore an expression of shock identical to Justin's.

Evanna let out an ear-piercing shriek that had surely grabbed the attention of at least everyone in the nearby classes. She leaned against the wall, feeling faint. She watched as people rushed out of the classrooms and stared at the scene. Evanna caught George's gaze before she fainted and his bright blue orbs were the last thing she saw before her world went black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Parvati hadn't noticed that Evanna had fainted until she heard George Weasley yelling and rushing over to her. Parvati wondered what was going on between those two, but didn't have time to question it now. She bent down next to George, who was fretting over his friend.

"I think it was just a bit much for her to take in," Parvati said quietly. George nodded, without taking his eyes off of Evanna. He took her limp hand in his own as Parvati checked the girl's pulse, which was normal.

"Caught in the act!" Ernie Macmillan roared, pointing at Evanna. Parvati and George stared at him as if he were an idiot (which he very well might have been).

" _She's unconscious, you numpty!_ " George yelled back, holding back a far more rude word. Ernie didn't say anything else, but he still looked suspicious. Parvati couldn't possibly see how anyone could pin this on Evanna anymore, but there were still many scared and dubious faces in the crowd.

After Justin and Nearly Headless Nick had been taken up to the hospital wing (Ernie had been tasked to use a large fan to blow Nick up there), Professor McGonagall turned to Parvati and George, who were still by the unconscious Evanna. It almost surprised her that George's twin was nowhere to be found, but then perhaps he was still a badger? (But honestly, George should've been less careless.)

"Well, you three," Professor McGonagall said, gesturing to the two second-years (one currently out cold) and the fourth year, "should go up to the Headmaster's office to let him know what happened . . . Hopefully Miss Potter will wake up soon. For now, Mr. Weasley, would you take her?"

"Gladly," George said, with a slightly teasing voice.

He picked up the unconscious Evanna and followed Professor McGonagall and Parvati to Dumbledore's office. He knew the way already; he and Fred were the school's biggest pranksters, what did you expect? He had also worked out that the password changed on the regular basis and was generally the name of a candy. For example, today when Professor McGonagall approached the entrance (where a large stone gargoyle stood guard), she said, "Lemon drop!"

George noted that Parvati was in complete awe of the way the stepped aside, so that they could enter the wall behind him. He shot her a sly grin and stepped onto the spiral staircase that was slowly moving upwards towards Dumbledore's office. Parvati hesitantly followed him, but only after Professor McGonagall had done so too.

Professor McGonagall told them to wait in the office for the headmaster to arrive, so George sat Evanna awkwardly down in a chair in front of Dumbledore's desk, her head lolling from side to side. Parvati sat down in the chair next to Evanna, and George began to walk aimlessly around the office, examining different things.

His eyes landed on the sorting hat, which seemed almost like it was staring back at him. He bit his lip, remembering when he had been sorted, but these thoughts soon slipped from his mind when he heard, "Where am I? Did I get expelled? Does everyone think I'm the Heir of Slytherin? Did they chase me as an angry mob? With pitchforks? _Am I dead_?!"

George laughed at Evanna's hasty conclusion-jumping. "You just fainted, Eva. It's a good thing you woke up too, because we're waiting for Dumbledore to arrive. This is his office." He lowered his voice as he came closer to where the two second year girls sat. "I hear that we're going to be — " He paused dramatically, making both girls go a bit white, thinking he was going to say expelled. Then he finished with, " _interrogated_."

Evanna hit him lightly, trying to look angry, but failing exceptionally. "You git! You scared me for a second there!" George just laughed.

Parvati watched them. They really were quite cute together. She could see them going out together in the near future. As they bickered playfully (unlike Fred and Hermione, who seemed to hate each other, though Parvati suspected that those two would also get together at some point), Parvati's eyes lingered around the office. It was such an interesting place, if she wasn't so scared about why they were here, she might've wanted to stay. Her dark brown eyes landed on a frail little bird. It was rather ugly. The few feathers that it had left were falling out and it seemed to be choking.

Suddenly, the bird caught _fire_! Parvati shrieked and tugged on Evanna sleeve, directing her attention to the bird. George searched frantically for his wand, obviously having a spell in mind to put out the flaming bird, but couldn't find it. Evanna and Parvati watched as the bird gave a final shriek and slowly its ashes fluttered to the ground.

The three students just stared at it in shock until a voice broke through the stunned silence, "Oh dear, what have we here?"

The three students immediately began to try to explain at once.

"Professor Dumbledore! Your bird was choking and then it just caught fire — "

"I swear there was nothing we could do! I've been blamed for enough today — "

"I was going to do an Aguamenti, but then I couldn't find my wand! I must've left it with Fred, who I think is still a badger — "

Dumbledore held up a hand to silence them. "Fawkes is a phoenix. Phoenixes burst into flame when it is time for them to die and are reborn from the ashes. Watch him . . ."

They looked to see a tiny, wrinkled, newborn bird poke its head out of the ashes. It was quite as ugly as the old one.

"It's a shame you had to see him on a Burning Day," said Dumbledore, seating himself behind his desk. "He's really very handsome most of the time, wonderful red and gold plumage. Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They can carry immensely heavy loads, their tears have healing powers, and they make highly _faithful_ pets.

"Now," Dumbledore said, linking his fingers and gazing at them seriously, "about earlier . . ."

"It wasn't Evanna, Professor," Parvati burst out. "I was with her, she didn't do that or anything else — "

"And then she fainted too, so there's no way — " George added, before Dumbledore cut them both off.

"I do not believe it was Evanna."

"You don't?" Evanna asked, a huge weight lifting off of her chest.

"No," Dumbledore said. "But I do want to talk to you. I must ask if you, _any of you_ , has anything that you would like to tell me. Anything at all."

Each student _did_ have something they wanted to say. Parvati wanted to ask if it meant anything special that Evanna was a Parselmouth and how, because of that fact, that the majority of the school thought that Evanna, sweet Evanna Potter, was the Heir of Slytherin. George wanted to ask about Malfoy, and if Dumbledore thought he was Slytherin's Heir, like the Golden Trio did (but that wasn't really his information to disclose anyway). Evanna wanted to ask about the disembodied voice and if she was in anyway connected to Salazar Slytherin (something she had begun to suspect).

"Nothing, Professor," they chorused, but each knew that they all had something they had considered saying.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

True to her word, Evanna allowed Fred and George to escort her around, saying things like, "Make way for the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil witch coming through . . ." It made her glad to think that at least _some people_ thought the idea of her being the heir was ridiculous.

Some of Evanna's friends, who weren't as close with her as Ron, Hermione, and the twins were, worried about her sanity as she laughed along with the twins when they asked her loudly who she was going after next or when they pretended to ward her off with garlic.

"Are you _sure_ you're okay, Evanna?" Lavender asked, as she and Parvati walked past her and the twins, who were joking about such things.

"Yep!" Evanna had responded cheerily.

Dean and Seamus had nearly dragged her off to the Hospital Wing, fearing that something had affected her brain, Tracey (and her friends Daphne and Blaise) had asked if Evanna wanted them to hex the twins, and Ginny had started avoiding Evanna even more than she already had been.

Evanna didn't mind though. If people were going to assume that she was the Heir of Slytherin, let them assume it all they wanted. It would just make it even more embarrassing for them when she proved them wrong.

In fact, she would ( _hopefully_ ) be proving them wrong in a matter of weeks. Only a handful of people were staying over the holidays, making Evanna happy, as she was beginning to hate the stares, glares, and angry whispers behind her back when she walked through the halls. It made her happier still when they were mostly people she liked. Excluding Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, it would be her, Hermione, Ron, Fred, George, and Tracey. The Polyjuice Potion was almost complete too, so their plan would soon commence. And Evanna couldn't wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yes, I'm keeping Tracey at the school over the holidays because I wanted Evanna to have a willing Slytherin girl to help them with their plot :) I considered Daphne too, but she has a younger sister who's not yet in Hogwarts, so I thought it would be more realistic if she went home over the holidays this year.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	28. Stick to Exploding Snap

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 28: Stick to Exploding Snap
> 
> A/N: So, I'm going to address some guests (thank you all for reviewing :D)
> 
> xoxo said: I actually REALLY love that you've included Fremione in this story - I already liked it, then discovered the Fremione and was ecstatic. I don't dislike Romione (pretty neutral on it, actually) but Fremione is my OTP - and JKR's original plan was for Fremione, so anyone says they could never work has got another thing coming. ;) I also love the good!Slytherins - there's not enough of them in fanfics - and Parvati's inclusion. :)
> 
> Thank you so much! Fremione is my OTP too (that and Guna) and I love the good!Slytherins and Parvati as well :)
> 
> Guest said: Ok, I'm the guest who said the thing about Ron and hermione and I get it I still really love the story so don't freak out ok
> 
> Thank you for clearing that up, don't worry, I'm not freaking out :) I understand and thank you for reviewing!
> 
> And finally, Guest said: How come u don't update a lot?
> 
> Sorry that my updates are kind of slow sometimes, but I'm really trying my hardest! I hope that you ask because you want more updates and like the story :) You see, I'm only fifteen, so I'm still in high school, and I go to church too, so I have a lot going on, but you have to admit that I do still update pretty often. I'm constantly working on this story and I try to make it as well-written as possible :D Hopefully in the summertime I'll update even more often, even though I still have stuff going on in the summer (like I said, I go to church, I'll be helping with our VBS, I'm going to Creation Fest this summer (for the first time EVER! OH MY GOSH I'M SO EXCITED!), and I have summer camp near the end of August too) but yes. I try to update as soon as each chapter is done.
> 
> Thank you all for reviewing and reading!

Evanna loved the Christmas holidays. A time to be with friends and family, to celebrate, to give and receive, and who could forget the food? Evanna was hardly seen without a smile spread across her face.

At the moment, she was with Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Ginny, and Tracey, all of them on frozen-over lake, skating around. Percy had graciously magicked them all some skates, before going back into the school, claiming to be too cold to deal with this nonsense. Evanna was especially happy to see that Tracey was getting along with everyone; she didn't have any other friends who stayed over the holidays.

Surveying the scene, she saw that Ron was helping Hermione to her feet, as she had fallen over and Tracey and Ginny were holding hands, helping each other skate around. Ginny was smiling widely, which was something you didn't see too often nowadays, making Evanna happy. Evanna laughed as the twins began to skate circles around her, trying to keep her trapped in place.

She tried to skate past them to escape her imprisonment, but failed as she nearly collided with Fred. She giggled, and began to say, "Stop it! I don't want to stay here forev — "

There was a horrifying crack and both twins skidded to a halt, their faces going white. Evanna was staring down at her feet, which were now positioned over some breaking ice. Petrified with fear (maybe not the best expression, given the circumstances), she looked back up to the twins with absolute terror on her face.

"E-Evanna," Fred whispered, his voice cracking slightly, obviously afraid. "Just — just move slowly towards us."

Evanna gulped and shook her head frantically. "I-I can't. I'll fall in!"

"Give me your hand," George said in barely more than a whisper, stretching his hand out as close to her as he could.

Evanna was near hyperventilating now, but she did as she was told, stretching her hand as far as it could go, yet still centimeters short of George's fingers. She shifted her body weight, and the ice let out another loud crack. Evanna hesitated, then bravely shifted a bit more, desperate to get to safety. But then there was a horrible crack and she felt the ice give way beneath her.

She fell under with a splash into the freezing depths of the lake. She was sinking fast, her heavy layers waterlogging her and making it difficult to swim towards the surface. She could see the circle of wintery light getting smaller and smaller and she could see the shadows of her friends scurrying around at the top. She continued to desperately — and unavailingly — try to make her way to the surface.

Someone on the surface had dived in; two someones in fact, and Evanna didn't have to think twice about who they were. Her mind was slowly becoming condensed and she was feeling lightheaded by the time Fred and George had reached her, each slinging one of her arms around their shoulders.

As soon as they resurfaced, Evanna took a vital gulp of fresh air, coughing and spluttering as Ron and Hermione helped her onto the ice. She sat shivering as she watch Fred and George pull themselves from the water. She also blushed to see that they had stripped of their coats and shirts before they had dove in, leaving her looking at George's — er, _their_ shirtless features. She noticed that Hermione was blushing a bit too, making her feel less embarrassed.

Ignoring her own embarrassment, Evanna shakily got to her feet and pulled the twins into a tight hug. "Th-thank you," she choked out, hesitating before kissing them each on the cheek.

"Do you think we would've let you drown?" they asked together, but with slight embarrassment themselves as they gently touched where she had kissed them.

Evanna smiled slightly and everyone headed towards the very safe snow bank on the edge of the lake. She sat down beside Tracey, reassuring her that she was fine, just a bit cold, as she shivered uncontrollably. In any other circumstance, Tracey might've laughed at how Evanna said this with her teeth chattering, her cheeks and nose red, and her arms rubbed her sides as fast as she could.

Evanna felt her face go even redder than she already was as she felt George drape his coat around her shoulders. Before she could protest, he said, "Don't want you getting hypothermia, do we? I'll be fine."

Evanna hesitantly pulled his coat tighter around her shoulders, watching as he pulled on his shirt and Fred tossed him his sweater. It was his sweater from Mrs. Weasley; the one with the F on it, of course. Fred wore the one with the G.

"Hello? Earth to Evanna?" Tracey waved her hand in front of Evanna's bright green eyes, which were still focused on George.

"Sorry, what?" Evanna asked, her head whipping back towards the Slytherin girl, causing Tracey to raised an eyebrow, a curious smirk already forming on her face.

"You were staring over at George longer than someone does when they're ' _just friends_ ,'" Tracey said, using air quotes to emphasize her point. "Do you have any crushes that I should know about? It more importantly, that he should know about?"

" _No_!" Evanna said quickly, too quickly. Tracey's smirk just got wider. "I don't!" Evanna repeated defiantly, crossing her arms.

"What doesn't Evanna have?" Ron asked, twisted his head to look over at the two girls.

"Nothing!" Evanna cried, shoving her hand over Tracey's mouth as the Slytherin begun to say, "A crush."

Ron shrugged, but when Evanna had turned to glare at Tracey, he sent the Slytherin a look that said, 'Who _doesn't_ know about those two?'

"You were going to tell him!" Evanna hissed at Tracey, who was struggling to hide her laughter.

Tracey shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm a Slytherin, sweetheart; determined to meet the goals, you know."

"And I suppose that your goal is to ruin my life?" Evanna asked in a huff.

"Never! Just to help you with your love life," Tracey replied innocently. Evanna just let out another huff and turned away from the girl. Tracey sighed, saying, "Okay, okay, I'm sorry, Evanna! Is there anything I could do to make it up to you?"

Evanna paused, her mind whizzing. Tracey could help them! "Actually, there is. But we can't talk about it now. Meet me later, okay?"

Tracey, very intrigued by Evanna's mysteriousness, nodded her head eagerly, watching Evanna stand up and say to the group at large, "Next time, let's just stick to Exploding Snap."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna was still draped in George's coat when they sat by the fire in the Gryffindor common room, playing a very intense game of Exploding Snap. Now it was just Ron and George facing off for the grand prize; title of Exploding Snap Master and bragging rights. Evanna was laughing at the state of their faces, both covered in ash and soot. But it was getting late, and nearly time for Evanna to meet Tracey.

Evanna nudged Hermione, who began to talk to the boys about clever strategies, diverting their attention away from Evanna. Evanna let George's coat drop to the floor as she snuck out of the common room. Both Ron and Hermione were in on Evanna plan for Tracey and thought it was (to quote Ron) ' _bloody brilliant_ '. So they had agreed on distracted the twins, Ginny, and (if necessary) Percy, while she went to meet the Slytherin.

Evanna walked quietly through the halls, knowing that it was late, but not so late that she would get in very much trouble if she were caught. Nevertheless, it would be better if she wasn't caught. She ducked into an empty classroom, where a brunette girl clad in green striped pajamas was waiting for her.

"So," Tracey prompted, sitting on the vacant teacher's desk and looking at Evanna with curiosity filled eyes.

"How close are you with Draco Malfoy?" Evanna asked. "Do you two talk much?"

Tracey made a disgusted and confused face. "Uh, mostly our conversations are him saying something stupid and me telling him to shut up. So no, I'm not close to him."

"Do you think he'd talk to you if you asked him?" Evanna pressed.

"I don't know, maybe — _Evanna, what are you planning_?" Tracey asked insistently.

"Look, Ron, Hermione and I are on a mission," Evanna began, "to find out who the Heir of Slytherin really is."

" _You mean it's not you_?" Tracey asked in mock surprise.

" _We think it might be him_ ," Evanna continued, as if Tracey hadn't spoken, "so we're using Polyjuice Potion to get the answer out of him."

"What's Polyjuice Potion?"

"A potion that can make us morph into someone else for a limited time. So, Hermione stole a hair from another Slytherin girl, Millicent Bulstrode I think, and Ron is going to get a hair from Crabbe (or Goyle, we're not picky) and I'm — "

"You want one of my hairs, right?" Tracey guessed.

"Right! But we need Crabbe and Goyle to stay away from Malfoy while we interrogate him, so — "

"So, I need to keep Crabbe and Goyle away from Malfoy while you try to get some answers from him."

Evanna cast Tracey a glare. "Would you quit interrupting? Though, to be honest, I admire your spot on assumptions." Tracey merely gave Evanna a goofy smile as the redhead continued. "I understand if you're against this, but we could really use your help."

"Of course I'll help, you dolt! But do you think I could help you revise your plan a bit?" Tracey asked, hopping off the desk and slinging an arm around Evanna's shoulder.

Evanna grinned widely, saying, "Fire away, Trace."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you asked Percy, it seemed as if Evanna knew something that no one else did. Debatably, she was often like this, but it seemed as if she had recently acquired new information. She had that same glint in her eye that he so often saw in Fred and George's when they were planning pranks. But it was doubtful that she had joined the ranks of a school prankster, as recently she didn't spend as much time with the twins as she did with Ron, Hermione, and that Slytherin girl. If Percy had his say, he would tell them that so much time spent with a Slytherin wouldn't be healthy for them, but he knew that Evanna would simply make him feel guilty. She had a way of twisting his words and spitting them back out at him as an insult to his pride. He doubted that she meant any harm by it, she just wanted him to nose out of her business, but it did make him wonder about her.

Percy, upon passing them during breakfast one morning, caught bits and pieces of sentences that didn't make sense to him.

"— so if you turned into him — "

"— but no, it would be far better to turn into the other one — "

"— they're _both_ trolls, does it really matter? I mean, come on — "

"— and you might need to rethink that strategy too, what if you accidentally put a hair from each of them in the potion? I don't know what happens then — "

It seemed as if they were debating some deranged fantasy, in which they could turn into trolls. But who would even fantasize about becoming a troll? He shook his head as he past Ginny, who was scribbling frantically in her diary. Those four had better not be causing trouble . . .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took several snowball fights for the six Gryffindors and Slytherin to get tired of all the outdoor play. They trudged past many snowmen and snow angels before they came to a halt at the Quidditch pitch. Perhaps they weren't so tired of the snow after all. "Fancy a game of Quidditch anyone?" Fred asked with a knowing grin in Evanna's direction.

"I'm game," Evanna said, glancing around at the rest of the crowd.

"Sure, I'll play," Tracey agreed.

"Me too," Ginny said eagerly, then bit her lip before saying, "but I don't have a broomstick . . ."

"Let's go run up and grab two school brooms, Gin," Tracey offered. "I need a broom too." Ginny smiled graciously over at the Slytherin as the pair started to head towards where the school brooms were kept.

"I think I'll stay inside, thanks," Hermione muttered. "I'm _freezing_! Ron, would you come with me?"

Ron opened his mouth, no doubt to object, but Hermione gave him a look that plainly said, ' _we need to finalize the plan_.' He then closed his mouth, glancing over at Evanna surreptitiously before answering the bookworm.

"Oh, _all right_ ," Ron sighed in exasperation, trudging with Hermione back towards the castle, though Evanna knew the exasperation was just for show. He really didn't mind helping his friends, even if it meant a trip to the library.

"Well, I'll go grab all of our brooms then," Fred said, heading up towards the school as well. "You two just wait here, I'll be back!"

George and Evanna stood awkwardly together, trying to avoid eye contact. Neither really knew why they were so embarrassed, but they were. "So, uh," George gestured to the Quidditch pitch, "you want to go wait on the pitch?"

Evanna nodded and they headed into the snowy field. Thankfully, they weren't left in awkwardness for long. Fred was flying towards them, a broom in each hand. "So, didja snog yet?" he asked, as he tossed George his broom.

Evanna and George both went very red and George hit his twin with his broomstick. Fred held his hands up in defense. "Sorry, sorry, just an innocent question," Fred said with a smirk, handing Evanna's broom to her. She glared at him before mounting her broom and speeding into the air. "Hey, hey, wait up!" Fred called after her, as he and George quickly flew into the air behind her.

"So, what're Ron and Hermione really doing?" Fred asked once he and George had caught up with the petite redhead.

"You don't miss a thing do you?" Evanna asked with slight annoyance.

"Nope," George replied for his twin, inching closer.

Evanna rolled her eyes and pointed out Tracey and Ginny flying towards them. The twins exchanged glances, but let the subject drop for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you liked this chapter, it wasn't my favourite, especially near the end, but the next chapter will be all about the Polyjuice Potion! So that'll be fun.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	29. Tracey and Tracey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 29: Tracey and Tracey
> 
> A/N: Okay, this title made me think of "Marley and Marley" from Muppets Christmas Carol (I love the Muppets :D)
> 
> Now, I must respond to some more guests!
> 
> Guest said: I really really like this story and I hope you are going to keep it going also I would like to ask if you could make the chapters a bit longer and I think it's cool that you go to church and stuff like that not a lot of people do that anymore you rock
> 
> NO, YOU ROCK AND YOU KNOW THAT! (Sorry, Cars reference :D) But THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! I'm serious, you are amazing! Thank you for liking my story! I will definitely keep going! I'll try to make the chapters a bit longer, but I always make sure that each of them are more than two thousand words. Thank you! I like going to church, I have a great church. I also kinda grew up in the church, as a pastor's daughter AND granddaughter, and literally, all of my friends are from church, I have no friends anywhere else. Which is okay because I love my friends :) actually I love everybody. I would keep going, but I don't want to bore you!
> 
> Also, thank you other Guest, for pointing out that formerly was misspelt on my profile :) I appreciate that. AND THANK YOU ALL FOR READING I REALLY LIKE THIS CHAPTER!

Ron wasn't used to being woken up by a girl. It made sense, considering that he was in the _boys'_ dorm and girls weren't really allowed up there. But even more than that, he wasn't used to being woken up by a _Slytherin_ girl. This also made sense, as he was in the _Gryffindor_ boys' dorm and Slytherins couldn't even get into the common room. Bloody hell, they probably didn't even know where it was. Putting all these things into consideration, Ron was very surprised to find Tracey over his bed on Christmas morning.

"Get up." He barely dodged the pillow she flung at his head. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

"Bloody hell, Tracey, you're not supposed to be here, let alone _here_ ," Ron said, gesturing to the room.

"Hermione has been up for the last hour adding more lacewing flies to the potion," Tracey said, ignoring him and tossing another pillow his way when he didn't move. "Evanna's been entertaining your family so they don't find out what we're doing, though I must admit those twin brothers of yours are persistent."

"How did you get in here?" Ron insisted, getting to his feet and stretching.

"Hermione let me in. _Somebody_ needed to wake you up and nobody else was available." Tracey flung a final pillow at him (where was she getting all of those pillows?!) and headed downstairs. "I'm going to help Evanna keep the other Weasleys away from us, you get dressed and go find Hermione. I think she's in the bathroom again."

" _What about Christmas?_ " Ron called after her, to which she gave no reply, but he got the impression that presents would wait until the potion was done.

Ron dressed quickly and snuck downstairs, trying to escape the common room without his siblings noticing. They were all currently entranced in a story that Evanna was telling, and Tracey seemed to have just made a funny comment, as there was a sudden wave of laughter. Ron left the room before he could get too curious.

He found Hermione just Tracey had said she'd be: Moaning Myrtle's Bathroom. She was currently stirring the cauldron with a wide grin on her face. When she saw Ron, her grin just widened. "It's nearly finished! Three more stirs counterclockwise . . ."

Ron sat next to her, ignoring Myrtle, who hovered annoyingly close to him, obviously still upset that a _boy_ dared enter a _girls'_ bathroom. With a final stir of the ladle, Hermione beamed over at Ron. Hermione's optimism was infectious and Ron was grinning now too.

"Time for Christmas," Hermione said. "Then tonight, we find out who the Heir of Slytherin is."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tracey walked calmly by Crabbe and Goyle, yanking some hairs from Crabbe's head as she did. He whipped his head to face her and she just smirked, sticking her tongue out at him. He stood up, looking ready to pummel her, and Goyle stood up too, ready to fight anyone who dared mess with his friend. Tracey just laughed, as if she thought they looked pathetic. On the contrary, they could probably seriously injure her, but then again, they wouldn't because everything was going according to plan.

As they began to chase after their fellow Slytherin, Tracey ran from the Great Hall and towards a secluded corridor. She was much faster than Crabbe and Goyle and had made it before they had. She could see Ron, his ginger hair making it more obvious that he was watching from around the corner. Tracey motioned for him to move out of sight as she heard Crabbe and Goyle's pounding footsteps nearing.

As soon as they turned the corner to face her, she pointed her wand at Goyle and said clearly, "Petrificus Totalus!"

Once he was immobilized, Crabbe hesitated, giving Tracey enough time to petrify him too. Of course, this spell wasn't permanent, so they would be released in about an hour. Enough time for the rest of the plan to be wrapped up.

Ron came around the corner, with a small vial, in which Tracey put Crabbe's hair. "They'll be able to move again in about an hour, so hurry up!"

"Thanks Tracey," Ron said. "Does Evanna have some of your hairs?"

Tracey nodded. "I'm going to put these two somewhere — maybe a closet — and get far enough away so that the story they come up with ends up being completely ludicrous."

"Good idea. I'll see you soon," Ron said with an accomplished grin, running towards Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once inside the bathroom however, the smile disappeared from Ron's face.

"Hermione! You _idiot_!"

"I just wanted to help! I was feeling a bit useless!"

"You made the _whole freaking potion_! You played the _most important part of all_!"

"Evanna, I said I'm sorry! How was I supposed to know that those were cat hairs?!"

Ron didn't like the sound of this conversation. He peered nervously around the corner and saw a shocking sight. Evanna stood with a cat. Well, no, it was obviously Hermione, but she seemed to have turned into a cat. Her skin was now covered in fur and she had cat ears and a tail. Her whiskers twitched with embarrassment when she saw Ron.

"Do I want to know?" he asked hesitantly.

"Hermione felt that _she_ , the person who brewed the potion and came up with the _whole freaking idea_ , was useless, so she took those so-called Millicent Bulstrode hairs and took some Polyjuice, but — "

"They were cat hairs?" Ron asked incredulously. "Hermione, you're not supposed to use Polyjuice Potion to turn into animals — "

"I _know_!" Hermione moaned, covering her face with her paws. " _I'm sorry_!"

"You realize that you'll have to go to Madam Pomfrey?" Evanna said. "She'll want to know what happen!"

"She doesn't really ask too many questions," Ron pointed out. "Look, I'll go get Tracey to stay with you, 'Mione. She can't have gotten far — "

"After!" Evanna ordered, handing him a glass of what looked like thick, dark mud. "We're wasting time! Just put your Crabbe hairs in this and I'll put my Tracey hairs in this one." Ron did as he was told, only hesitating when Evanna added, "By the way, as proven by Hermione, the transformation _does_ hurt."

Ron braced himself and quickly downed the potion. Evanna was right; it did hurt. At first he thought he was going to be sick, but then he had to sit on the floor to keep from falling on it when a burning feeling began to spread from his stomach to his fingers and toes. Then his skin began to bubble over and he watched as his hands grew larger before his very eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut, the image of his skin being stretched out and reformed into the massive lump that was Crabbe made him want to _really_ get sick.

He waited for a few scrutinizing moments to make sure that the pain wasn't going to start up again, but once he concluded that it wasn't, her opened his eyes. Evanna — well, she now looked exactly like Tracey — stood over him, arm extended to help him to his feet.

"Urgh, Crabbe is heavy," Evanna muttered as she tried to pull Ron upright. "Whoa, I sound just like Tracey. Her voice is a bit deeper than mine, huh, I never really realized that before — wait, getting distracted. Why don't you go find Tracey and I'll meet you in the Great Hall. Hey, _I_ can't find Tracey," Evanna protested when Ron gave her a look, "it would be pretty weird if _Tracey_ told _Tracey_ that Hermione was a cat and needed attention."

"Point taken," Ron grunted, then raised an eyebrow at his new and very deep voice. "I'll go find her and tell her to hang out with Hermione and then I'll go find you."

"Right. Ready? Go!" Evanna shouted, as if it were a race, and she and Ron both darted from the bathroom, leaving Hermione alone with Myrtle, who teased her about her ears.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Did you find Tracey?" Evanna asked quietly when she saw Ron approaching her. He nodded and the two of them set off towards the dungeons, trying to remember that directions Tracey had given them to find the Slytherin common room.

"Tracey seemed really worried about Hermione," Ron muttered.

"Well who wouldn't be?" Evanna pointed out.

"Yeah, but — " Whatever Ron was going to say, Evanna never found out, as Percy strolled around the corner and Ron's mouth fell open.

"What're you doing down here?" said Ron in surprise.

"That," Percy said stiffly, obviously annoyed, "is none of your business. It's Crabbe, isn't it?"

"Wh — oh, yeah," said Ron, almost forgetting that he _was_ Crabbe.

"Well, get off to your dormitories," said Percy sternly. "It's not safe to go wandering around dark corridors these days."

" _You are_ ," Ron pointed out.

"I," said Percy, drawing himself up, "am a prefect. Nothing's about to attack _me_."

"I wouldn't count on it," Evanna muttered darkly, but Percy didn't seem to have heard this, as a fourth person came up.

"Crabbe? Where have you been? Where's Goyle and why are you with _her_?" Draco Malfoy drawled, obviously not pleased about something. Evanna wondered what.

"Goyle's eating, I think," Ron said, and Evanna couldn't help but think what a great Crabbe impression he was doing. "I was eating too, but then I stopped. She's . . ." He hesitated, unsure of what to say.

"I'm just heading for the common room _we all share_ , is that some sort of crime, Malfoy?" Evanna snapped, doing a rather spot on Tracey impression.

Malfoy had no good retort and said nothing other than, "Well, come on then!"

They set off towards the Slytherin common room, which was behind a bare stone wall. Evanna remembered Tracey explaining this all to them in great detail, so that they would be able to find the common room and actually enter it once they arrived.

"What's the new password again?" Malfoy asked.

"Pure-blood," Evanna replied, refraining from thinking that it was stupid that he forgot, as Neville forgot the password to Gryffindor tower all the time. But when the secret door in the wall opened up, she shot Malfoy a fake smile, saying, "See, you _do_ need me!"

Malfoy rolled his eyes and pushed past her to enter the common room. Ron did too, but she knew that was just to keep up appearances. Entering quickly behind them, she took in the dreariness of it all. It was a low underground room, with rough stone walls and lamps that hung on chains, and even though there was a crackling fireplace, it was very cold. Evanna noted that there were only a few older Slytherins around and they didn't seem to care what Malfoy was showing Ron at the moment. But whatever it was, Ron was starting to look angry.

Evanna sat in a chair near to Ron, trying to not look like she was eavesdropping. Ron gave a shred of newspaper back to Malfoy, trying his hardest not to look angry. Evanna caught a glimpse of what it said and could see why it had triggered Ron's emotions: it was a rather derogatory article about Mr. Weasley.

Evanna was starting to get restless. Malfoy obviously didn't often discuss the Chamber of Secrets because the subject wasn't coming up. She stood up and Ron watched her leave the common room. Uh oh. That meant she was activating Plan B.

Ron looked back at Malfoy, who was obviously talking, but Ron wasn't really listening. He was just waiting for Evanna to return . . .

"Don't you think so, Crabbe? Don't you think those Weasleys are just — " Malfoy didn't finish what he was going to say, as he saw Tracey re-enter the common room.

"Crabbe, your flunky is trapped in a closet," Tracey said, and Crabbe stood up. Malfoy narrowed his eyes as he watched Crabbe exited the common room without a word. That was strange. How did Goyle get trapped in a closet? Was it Tracey's doing?

Tracey walked over and sat next to him on his right. "Hello Malfoy."

"Tracey," Malfoy replied curtly, then looked up to see a new person enter the room. "And . . . Tracey?!"

The new Tracey came and sat down on the other side of him. Malfoy looked around wildly, but the other Slytherins had already gone up to bed. "How — "

"Not your biggest concern right now," the Tracey on the left said, waving her hand dismissively. "We want to know what you know about the Chamber of Secrets."

Draco narrowed his eyes at the Tracey on his right. Her expression . . . It was a lot liked the deadpanned expression that Evanna Potter used whenever she didn't want Snape to get to her. "Potter?" he asked incredulously.

"Now, Malfoy, think about what you're saying. How could _I_ be Evanna Potter?" the right Tracey said dramatically.

"You are currently sitting on both sides of me, I think it's safe to say that one of you being an imposter is a very likely possibility," Draco said, trying to sound as calm as possible. He knew that Tracey did one mean Bat Bogey Hex, and Evanna was pretty skilled too. He hated to think of what they could do if he pissed them off.

The right Tracey just shrugged, but winked at him, confirming his thoughts. "Now, please tell us what you know, or, well, let's just say things will get messy."

Draco frowned. It looked like he would have to cooperate. "I don't know who it is."

Both Tracey and Evanna (he knew that the right Tracey _had_ to be Evanna) raised their wands, and he held up his hands in defense. "I swear I don't know! My father won't tell me anything about the last time it was opened, which was before his time — fifty years ago, mind you — but apparently he knows all about it. But I heard that last time the Chamber was opened, a Mudbl — " Draco hesitated as Tracey shoved her wand under his chin. "A _Muggle-born_ ," he amended, "actually _died_."

Draco watched as Evanna's eyes went wide (and also started to revert back to her original bright green, but he said nothing about this). She exchanged a glance with Tracey, and Tracey said, "What happened to whoever opened the Chamber last time?"

"Expelled," Draco said. "I expect they're still in Azkaban."

"Wizarding Prison," Tracey explained when Evanna shot her a questioning look. "Is that _all_ you know, Malfoy?"

"I swear it is!" Draco said.

"Alright," Evanna said, standing up. "Come on, Tracey."

"Where are you going?" Draco asked, watching as the two girls (one of which had a now very visible lightning bolt shaped scar on her head).

"Nowhere in particular. Just far enough away so that whatever story you make up sounds preposterous," Tracey said. She paused at the door, and turned to him. "Petrificus Totalus!"

Draco watched helplessly from where he sat as the two girls left, closing the common room door behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Okay, for those who are about to ask "WHAT'S TO STOP MALFOY, CRABBE AND GOYLE FROM TELLING ON TRACEY, EVANNA, RON AND HERMIONE?!" Well the answer is simple: nobody would believe them if they said anything. Okay, maybe Snape would, but he doesn't have the authority to expel them (except for Tracey, but he won't) and Dumbledore, but he knows everything (like a creep)(or Jesus) so yeah.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	30. Diary of the Elusive TM Riddle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 30: Diary of the Elusive T.M. Riddle
> 
> A/N: My author's notes are becoming me just replying to guests, but that's okay! (Also, just btw, I know I keep changing the cover art (all made by myself) but I'm just trying to find the perfect one. Hope it doesn't confuse you too much and I hope you like my art!)
> 
> xoxo said: I would have expected a more subtle approach, from Tracey - the Slytherin - at least...
> 
> I know, but I wanted to make a kinda funny scene and I'm a Hufflepuff, so I couldn't think of a better thingy (other than the actual canon one, but that one was so boring)
> 
> Guest said: Loved this chapter so much it was great and I loved the two Traceys that was really funny also I would like to say that I also think the chapter are a bit short and could be a bit longer but it's no biggie still love this story
> 
> Thank you! I thought that was funny too :) and I'm sorry, I know you all want longer chapters! I'll try to make them a bit longer, but I honestly don't have that much time and I know you want me to update as fast as possible. Thank you for all of the support anyways!
> 
> And finally, Guest said: Since you not doing Ron and hermione together who does Ron end up with?
> 
> Ron will end up with Parvati. I know it's a bit obscure (I don't know if anyone's tried that before?) but I think it could be cute. I've actually got plans for all of the pairings, believe it or not, and I'm going to try and (sorry, try to) make them as cute as humanly (or wizardly, I suppose) possible!
> 
> THANK YOU ALL FOR THE SUPPORT! I LOVE YOU ALL!

Fred wasn't sure why Hermione was in the Hospital Wing, but it had to be bad because she was missing classes. He knew she hadn't been attacked, Evanna had confirmed that. ("Where's Granger?! Has she been petrified?!" "No, she hasn't, calm down. Why are you so upset anyways? I thought you and Hermione didn't get along." ". . .") To say that he wasn't worried would be a lie, but he definitely wasn't advertising his increasingly expanding worry.

Only George knew how truly worried he was, considering they never kept anything from each other. Of course, in retrospect, he wished he hadn't told his twin, because George was teasing him to no end. George seemed to be having some delusion in which Fred actually _liked_ Hermione, which was completely ridiculous! The prankster and the bookworm? It didn't work.

But Fred couldn't deny that he was worried. So, it came as no surprise (to George, at least) that Fred went to visit Hermione in the Hospital Wing.

Hermione looked up from the essay she had been writing (Ron and Evanna had been thoughtful enough to bring her any homework they got everyday) to see Fred peering sheepishly around the curtain that separated her bed from the rest of the wing. At least, he looked sheepish until he fully took in her appearance.

"Bloody hell, Granger," he muttered, eyes wide, "who did this to you?"

Hermione went red (or as red as she could go with cat fur covering her face) and replied as coolly as she could muster, "That's none of your business, Frederick."

"So nobody did it then?" Fred asked, moving cautiously closer. "Wait a second — did you try to Polyjuice as an animal?"

Hermione sighed. "I didn't mean to, honestly!" She paused. The worst was over and Fred leaving her alone before getting the whole story was unlikely, so maybe it was safe to let him know about their little project . . . "Look, you already know how we were going to use Polyjuice to interrogate Malfoy. Our original plan was for Ron and Evanna to Polyjuice as Crabbe and Goyle and for me to Polyjuice as Millicent Bulstrode — I believe that you and Lee helped restrain her from killing me at the dueling club? But Tracey was helping us revise our plan and pointed out that it would be silly for me to Polyjuice as Millicent."

"I'm inclined to agree," Fred said, sitting hesitantly on the edge of her bed. "I mean, her returning for a single day would be slightly suspicious, don't you think?"

"Well, yes, but I wasn't thinking at the time," Hermione snapped. "I just thought that I was a bit useless to the plan, so I took the Polyjuice with Millicent's hair — or what I thought was her hair. It turns out that she has a cat and, well . . ." Hermione gestured to her face.

Fred sensed that the subject needed to be changed, so he asked, "So how did your plan go anyways?"

"Well, Ron Polyjuiced as Crabbe, but in hindsight he needn't have — we ended up using Plan B anyways. You see, Plan A was for Malfoy and Ron to talk and Malfoy would just spill the beans. But he didn't, so Evanna commenced Plan B.

"For Plan B, Evanna went to get Tracey and got rid of Ron. Then, she and Tracey went to pry the truth out of Malfoy, which turned out to not be much. Evanna said that Malfoy's face was priceless when two Traceys sat next to him." Hermione smiled slightly when Fred laughed.

The two sat in a slightly awkward silence for a few moments, until Fred said, "Look, Granger . . ."

"Could you not call me that?" Hermione asked in irritation. "You sound like Malfoy. He doesn't know my first name either."

Fred looked about ready to crack some joke or make some retort, but he kept his cool and just amended, "Hermione, you're really brilliant, you know that?"

Hermione smiled softly. "Thank you, Fred. You're pretty brilliant yourself."

Fred grinned.

"Have you two snogged yet?" Ron asked bluntly, as he and Evanna came around the curtain and stood on the other side of Hermione's bed. Fred and Hermione both went red.

"Ron," Evanna warned, but was smiling all the same.

"Well, I'll leave you three to your plotting," Fred muttered, standing up. "Vanna. Ron. Granger." He nodded to each of them as he passed, but sent Hermione a subtle wink before he disappeared on the other side of the curtains.

"Sooo?" Evanna pressed, grinning at Hermione. "Any juicy gossip we should know about?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You sound like Lavender Brown. But no, nothing to report." At Evanna's raised eyebrow, Hermione said, "Honestly! He just came to see how I was doing, like friends do, and we talked a bit."

"We heard him say you were brilliant," Ron said. " _And_ that you told him he was brilliant too."

Hermione blushed, but waved her hand dismissively. "Only being honest. Now, we need to talk about what Malfoy said."

"He didn't say anything useful!" Evanna protested. "He's not the Heir, he doesn't know who is, he just knows that last time the Chamber was opened, a Muggle-born died! Which only makes me worry more."

"No, he did say one thing that was kind of useful," Ron corrected. "He said that the Chamber was opened before, fifty years ago. So maybe whoever opened it last time is the same person who opened it this time?"

"How could it? I mean, the only people who even might be over fifty are the teachers . . ." Evanna trailed off. "Okay, think off all the suspicious teachers you can. And don't say Snape, he went to Hogwarts when my parents were there, which was after the whole Chamber of Secrets fiasco."

"Nobody comes to mind," Hermione said, thinking hard. "He is really the only teacher who acts like he would do that."

Before either Ron or Evanna could suggest anything else, Madam Pomfrey came to bustle them out, saying that Hermione needed to take her evening dose of medicine. As the pair walked down through the corridors, they played with ideas of different people who could be the Heir. So far they had crossed a few off their list — Dumbledore, McGonagall, Hagrid, Flitwick — but they hadn't added anybody. Really, nobody came to mind as 'oh they'd totally open the chamber of secrets'.

"Hey, is it wet?" Evanna asked suddenly, looking around her their feet, where there was a large puddle.

"Uh oh, I think Myrtle is upset," Ron muttered, gesturing to the ghost's bathroom, where water was pooling out from under the door. "Shall we investigate?"

"Of course," Evanna grinned, pushing open the door and allowing Ron to enter first. "Myrtle?" Evanna called, looking around. It seemed that Myrtle was in her usual stall. The sinks were overflowing and all of the candles had gone out.

"Oh, it's _you_ ," Myrtle huffed sulkily, peeking out from her stall. "Have you both come to throw books at me too?"

"Why would we want to throw books at you?" Ron asked, edging cautiously towards the ghost.

"How would I know? Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to come in and chuck a book at me!" Myrtle cried, waving her arms around to emphasize her point. "You know, some people actually think that they should all throw things at me just because I'm a ghost and can't feel it!"

"That's horrible," Evanna agreed. "Did you see who threw it? Perhaps we could hex them for you."

"No. I was just sitting in my usual spot and then a book flies through my head! It's over there," Myrtle said with disgust. "And don't go throwing it back at me!"

"We won't," Ron promised, as Evanna went over to the small leather book. She was about to pick it up, but Ron grabbed her wrist. "Wait, Evanna, it could be dangerous!"

"Yeah, but obviously someone handled it before chucking it through Myrtle's head," Evanna said.

"But what if it's been cursed? Dad's told me about all sorts of books that the Ministry has confiscated — "

Evanna had already picked up the book and started flipping through the pages. Ron said something very rude, to which Evanna returned with another word that he was sure she had gotten from hanging out with the twins.

"It's a diary."

"A diary?"

"A diary is a blank book in which the owner writes about their day-to-day activities — "

"Evanna, I know what a diary is."

Evanna just laughed and continued, "The pages are all blank, but there is a name. T.M. Riddle."

Ron tilted his head in thought, then after a few seconds snapped his fingers. "T.M. Riddle got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago. I remember because Filch made me polish his shield about fifty times in detention. That was the one I burped slugs all over."

Evanna chuckled. "Alright, then answer me this: who would try to flush away a blank diary that most likely didn't even belong to them?"

Ron gave a smug smile. "Come on, Evanna. I'm sure you could figure this one out, a great detective such as yourself." Evanna just stuck her tongue out at him. "Fine. Think about it. If he got an award fifty years ago, then maybe he knows who opened the Chamber of Secrets."

"Or did it himself," Evanna agreed. "But I don't think we'll be finding much out from this. I mean, it's blank!"

"We should ask someone to help us with some sort of revealing charm," Ron suggested. "I'm sure that there's something in this, right?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Nothing? Are you sure?"

"Not that we can find."

"What about a different spell?"

"Ron, we've tried all of the spells we know that reveal hidden stuff. Riddle probably got the thing and couldn't be bothered writing in it."

Fred handed the small book back to his younger brother, who was now frowning. George, as he twirled his wand absentmindedly, said, "What makes you think that this book has any secrets in it anyways?"

"The date."

"The date?"

"Yes, it's a date from fifty years ago. The last time the Chamber of Secrets was opened," Evanna replied, resting her chin on her hand. "I just wish this had some information in it. Then maybe we'd be closer to stopping all of this before history repeats itself."

The three Weasley boys exchanged somber looks, knowing she meant a Muggle-born dying.

"Well that's not going to happen this time," Fred said decisively, "because we're going to stop it."

Evanna nodded in resolute agreement, and took the diary from Ron, flipping it over. "It's dried up amazingly well for a Muggle diary . . . Maybe I'll start using it. Merlin knows if my years continue to be this exciting, I'll have enough to fill a novel."

"Or seven," Ron joked.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ginny stopped walking towards the portrait hole when she saw Evanna, Ron and Hermione around a small leather diary. _Tom's_ diary. _Her_ diary.

Hermione was rubbing a revealer on it, and frowning when nothing happened. What did they suspect the diary was hiding? Even Ginny didn't know that much about it, just that Tom Riddle had placed a bit of his soul in it, so that he could communicate with the next owners of the book.

Tom Riddle wasn't nice exactly. He was a Slytherin. He was at the school the last time the Chamber of Secrets had been opened. But he did give her advice, especially about the recent attacks.

Ginny couldn't remember where she was when the attacks took place. A lot of the time, she woke up with blood all over her, and rooster feathers around her bed. It scared her. Tom said that it was just one of those mean girls in her dorm playing tricks on her, but that didn't explain why Ginny couldn't remember anything during the exact times of the attacks. Tom continuously brushed it off, saying she was just stressed or tired, but she was starting to get suspicious.

Tom Riddle had admitted to her that he was a Slytherin and a Parselmouth. She had suspected the former for a while, as he was definitely cunning enough, but now that he had actually told her, she was beginning to suspect him of being more than he seemed. She remembered Tracey saying that when a Slytherin told you a seemingly harmless fact, they were probably hiding something.

At first, Ginny had thought maybe being a Parselmouth was his secret, but that couldn't be it, because he had made that seem harmless too. So she had confronted him. She had demanded to know what his secret was and then something had happened.

She had started viewing his memories, watching him walk through the corridors of the school fifty years ago. That had been enough for her. Honestly, she should've tried to drown him earlier. Dad always said never trust something if you can't see where it keeps its brain. So she had thrown it in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, right through Myrtle's head (fifty points!), not realizing until too late that Evanna Potter and her crew had sort of befriended the ghost.

Now, as she watched them pouring over the diary intently, she felt horror surge up within her. What if they figured out how the diary worked and Tom told them about how she had been blacking out during the attacks and had bloody and rooster feathers all over her bed? Honestly, she had started suspecting herself as the Heir for a couple of weeks now, and those three were so smart they would definitely figure it all out soon. She needed to get that diary back, before she was wrongfully accused (or perhaps rightly; the thought made her even more fearful). But how?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna hadn't found time to write in the diary until a few weeks later. She, Ron and Hermione had found out that T.M. Riddle had been a Prefect and Head Boy, but not what he was given an award for.

_Dear Diary_ , Evanna started, then paused briefly, before quickly adding, _I mean, journal, as I will be using this book to record my findings about the elusive T.M. Riddle._

_So far, Ron, Hermione and I have only found out that Riddle was a prefect and Head Boy, and that he attended the school the first time the Chamber was opened. I assume that Riddle would have information about the Chamber of Secrets and I do wish he had written in this so that we could solve this mystery quicker._

Evanna gasped as she watched the words she had written slowly dissolve into the paper, as if being absorbed by the book itself. She quickly slammed the diary shut, before slowly lifting the pages again. They were all completely blank yet again.

She would've assumed that this was standard for a wizarding diary, except this wasn't a wizard diary. It was a Muggle diary and shouldn't automatically erase what you've written. She slid the book back in her bag and ran to report this to her friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you liked the little bits about the diary. I liked Ginny's part, but that's just me. What did you like? Leave a review below :D
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	31. Tom Riddle Gives His Testimony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 31: Tom Riddle Gives His Testimony
> 
> A/N: Yay another chapter! As requested by several people, this chapter is longer than I usually make them. Also, when they're talking to Tom Riddle, Evanna, Hermione and Ron's responses are in _italics_ and Tom is in _**italics and bold**_. Just so you don't get too confused.
> 
> Also, more guest reviews :)
> 
> xoxo I'm glad I could make you laugh :D Also, to the guest who asked me to update every week, that is already what I strive to do. Sorry if it's not exactly every week, but I do update fairly often. Also, the guest who asked about why Parvati ends up with Ron instead of Lavender: I don't know. I never really liked Lavender that much, and I think Ronvati would be cute. I hope it works out. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

"Alicia! You have to _catch_ it!"

"George, watch out! You're supposed to give the _other_ team concussions, not your twin!"

"Oliver, the Quaffle is meant to stay _out_ of our goal!"

Evanna shook her head as she watched the team try and pull themselves together. The attacks had been stressful on everyone and had caused many practices to be postponed, but really, how were they getting so bad? She didn't blame Oliver for extending the practice later into the night.

Evanna seemed to be the only one who was able to focus. She didn't know why, she had more reason to be stressed out than anyone else here. She was still being blamed for the attacks, but there hadn't been any since Justin and Nearly Headless Nick. Also, she had forgotten to show Ron and Hermione the strange things the diary could do, and now she planned to show them tomorrow.

She effortlessly caught the Quaffle, which Katie had thrown far too high. Passing it to Angelina as she flew by, Evanna found her eyes following Fred and George. If she wasn't a Seeker, she might like to be a Beater. They always had so much fun.

A glint of gold by Fred's head made her snap out of her thoughts as she streaked towards him. He quickly dodged as she grabbed the tiny golden ball from the air. Holding the Snitch up high for the whole team to see, she headed for the ground. It was quite dark now, and she couldn't really see very well, so she stumbled a bit on her dismount.

Two figures appeared on either side of her, whom she at first assumed to be the Weasley twins, but ended up being Alicia and Angelina.

"Nice catch, Evanna," Alicia complimented, smiling.

"Oliver just announced the end of practice, but he and Katie are staying out for a fly," Angelina added, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Evanna giggled and then asked, "What about Fred and George?"

"I think they said something about toffee and then went to put the Bludgers back," Alicia said, as the three girls began to trek back towards the changing rooms. "Speaking of George, do you have a date for Valentine's Day?"

Evanna gave her a very deadpanned expression. "I'm only twelve."

"I know that, but don't you _want_ to go out with someone?" Alicia asked.

"Honestly? No. I don't really like boys in that sense yet," Evanna replied, trying to ignore the voice in her head that was reminding her that she did think George was very handsome and kind.

"Oh." Alicia sounded slightly disappointed.

"But I, on the other hand, am planning to go out with Fred," Angelina said proudly. "He asked me if I'd like to go to Hogsmeade and I said yes. I think he fancies me."

"As if there is a boy who _doesn't_ ," Alicia joked. "Lee's always making comments about it during his Quidditch commentary — "

"Well, Lee's a bit of a twit, isn't he? I've already said no to him several times — "

"A twit? No more of a twit than Fred is!"

Evanna's mind began to wander away from the older girls' conversation and to thoughts of the next day. Why was she beginning to wish that George would take her out?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was like something out of a horror film.

Evanna nearly screamed what she saw what he had done to the Great Hall. She had to look over at Ron and Hermione just to confirm she wasn't the only one seeing this. By their shocked expressions, she could tell that this was unfortunately very real.

The walls were all covered with large, lurid pink flowers. Worse still, heart-shaped confetti was falling from the pale blue ceiling. There were very few people who looked pleased with this new decor. The trio sat down across from Ginny, who was looking a bit nervous, just in time to see Lockhart stand up to make a speech.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Lockhart shouted, wearing robes that matched the flowers plastered on the walls. "And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all — and it doesn't end here!"

Lockhart clapped his hands and through the doors to the entrance hall marched a dozen surly-looking dwarfs. Not just any dwarfs, however. Lockhart had them all wearing golden wings and carrying harps.

"My friendly, card-carrying cupids!" beamed Lockhart. "They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter into the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly old dog!"

Evanna somehow doubted that anyone would take this advice, and even less that the teachers would.

"Well, this is probably the worst Valentine's Day ever," Ron commented as he began to pile food onto his plate.

"Indubitably," Evanna nodded, taking some bacon.

"That's a very big word for a very small girl."

Evanna looked innocently up at Marcus Flint as he passed and replied, "Don't use up all of your vocabulary in one sentence now."

He didn't seem to catch her insult, but a few members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team did and hid their laughter as he passed them. Evanna caught the eye of Blaise Zabini (one of the few Slytherins she was friends with) and he grinned at her.

"Nice one, pipsqueak," Lee teased.

"Shall I refer to you as Giraffe then?" Evanna shot back, with a smirk.

"Ah, I believe that title belongs to me," George said with fake smugness.

Evanna laughed, not noticing how Ginny was staring at her book bag, where the top of Riddle's diary was poking out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna, Hermione and Ron sat cross-legged on Ron's four-poster bed in the empty Boys' Dormitory (the boys' because Ron wouldn't be able to get into the girls' without help, which would make a scene and cause suspicion throughout the full common room). Evanna demonstrated the mysterious ink absorbing power of the diary by letting a blot of ink drip onto the page and get absorbed. Both Ron and Hermione confirmed that it was definitely not normal.

"So what do we do?" Ron asked.

"Write something and wait to see what happens," Hermione said.

Evanna reloaded her quill and wrote, _Hello. Our names are Evanna Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger._

The ink was absorbed and a few moments later, new words appeared and it definitely wasn't in Evanna's handwriting. _**Hello, Evanna Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. My name is Tom Riddle.**_

Evanna exchanged looks with her friends and quickly replied. _Well Tom, would you mind explaining how exactly this Muggle diary is talking back to us?_

_**I recorded my memories in some more lasting way than ink. But I always knew that there would be those who would not want this diary read,**_ Riddle said.

_I suppose that would explain why someone tried to flush it down a toilet_ , Evanna conceded. _What sorts of things do you hide, Tom?_

_**Things that happened at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,**_ Riddle answered vaguely.

_Quit being vague!_ Ron admonished, having stolen the quill from Evanna

"Ask him about the Chamber of Secrets," Hermione said in an excited whisper.

Ron complied. _Do you know anything about the Chamber of Secrets?_

Riddle's answer came quickly and untidily, making Evanna frown. She told herself to stop being suspicious as she read the answer. _**Of course I know about the Chamber of Secrets. In my day, they told us it was a legend, that it did not exist. But this was a lie. In my fifth year, the Chamber was opened and the monster attacked several students, finally killing one. I caught the person who'd opened the Chamber and he was expelled. But the headmaster, Professor Dippet, ashamed that such a thing had happened at Hogwarts, forbade me to tell the truth. A story was given out that the girl had died in a freak accident. They gave me a nice, shiny, engraved trophy for my trouble and warned me to keep my mouth shut. But I knew it could happen again. The monster lived on, and the one who had the power to release it was not imprisoned.**_

"Wow, this is great! Tom was actually the one who caught the person last time! He'll have a great testimony! It's lucky, isn't it?" Ron exclaimed happily.

"Yeah . . . Lucky . . ." Evanna muttered, unable to keep herself from this this was all too convenient.

_Could you tell us about it?_ Hermione asked, taking the quill from Ron.

_**No,**_ Riddle replied and then he paused slightly shocking the three of them, until he continued with, _**I can do better. Let me show you.**_

"Show us?" Evanna asked quietly. The other two shrugged. Evanna linked her hands with each of her friends' and nodded to Hermione.

_Okay._

The pages of the diary began to blow as though caught in a high wind, stopping halfway through the month of June. The little square for June thirteenth seemed to have turned into a minuscule television screen. They hesitantly bent closer to the book. And suddenly they were tumbling through the opening in the page, falling down with shrieks of fright.

They hit solid ground with a thud.

"Where are we?" Ron asked, getting to his feet and helping the two girls up. He stomped his feet a bit, as if testing the floor to see if it were real. Evanna didn't blame him for thinking this might be a hallucination, it's not everyday that a diary swallows you whole and spits you out in —

"This is Dumbledore's office," Evanna said in slight shock. "I recognize it from that time I was here with George and Parvati — " She had been doing a 360 on the spot, taking in the office again, noticing the little differences, until she came across the biggest difference, " — but _that's_ not Dumbledore."

Both Ron and Hermione spun to face the headmaster's desk, where a wizened, frail-looking wizard, bald except for a few wisps of white hair, sat in the spot that would usually hold Dumbledore, reading a letter by candlelight. It _definitely_ wasn't Dumbledore.

"Er — Sorry for _dropping_ in like this," Evanna said, grinning despite the situation (to which Ron facepalmed; she definitely spent too much time with the twins).

The wizard said nothing. In fact, he didn't even show signs of knowing they were there at all.

Evanna hesitantly walked up to the desk. "Hello?" She waved her hand in front of his face, and he continued reading his letter as if he couldn't see her at all.

"I recognize him," Hermione said suddenly. "Armando Dippet; Headmaster of Hogwarts during Tom Riddle's time."

" _Of course_ ," Evanna gasped, "we're in Riddle's memories! It's like watching a movie."

"A _what_?" Ron asked.

"Muggle thing, we should really watch some movies, the three of us, sometime," Evanna trailed off. "Wait, off topic. What we should really be discussing in how a diary can show us it's owner's memories. I don't think that's very normal."

A knock at the door snapped them out of their thoughts.

The headmaster called out, giving permission to enter, and a boy opened the door, looking apprehensive. His hair was jet-black and a prefect's badge stood out on his chest. Studying his face, Evanna deduced he was around sixteen. As he walked up to the desk, he passed right through Ron, whose eyes widened a considerable amount.

"Riddle. Sit down," Dippet instructed, motioning to the chair in front of the desk, in which Riddle sat, fidgeting nervously. "I overlooked your letter and I'm afraid that I cannot approve of your request."

"Professor Dippet," Riddle began, almost warningly, but also seemed to be pleading with the old man.

"Hogwarts is in no state to accommodate students over the summer. Do you not want to return home over the holidays?" Dippet asked.

"I have no desire to return to that place," Riddle replied coolly. "That muggle orphanage is not my home. Hogwarts is and always will be."

"You are Muggle-born?" Dippet asked, not with surprise, but mild interest.

"Half-blood, sir," said Riddle, with slight disdain. "Muggle father, witch mother."

"And are both your parents — ?"

"My mother died just after I was born, sir. They told me at the orphanage she lived just long enough to name me — Tom after my father, Marvolo after my grandfather."

"I'm very sorry, Tom, but you must understand the circumstances . . ." Dippet shook his head. "Perhaps, if these attacks were to cease, we might make special arrangements for you . . ."

As Dippet continued, Hermione, Evanna and Ron edged closer, excited at the prospect of finding out more information.

"My dear boy, you must see how foolish it would be of me to allow you to remain at the castle when term ends. Particularly in light of the recent tragedy . . . the death of that poor little girl . . . You will be safer by far at your orphanage. As a matter of fact, the Ministry of Magic is even now talking about closing the school. We are no nearer locating the — er — source of all this unpleasantness . . ."

"Sir — if the person was caught — if it all stopped — " Riddle asked, his eyes widening with an apparent idea.

"What do you mean?" Dippet asked suspiciously, leaning forwards in his chair. "Riddle, do you mean you know something about these attacks?"

"No, sir," said Riddle quickly. Too quickly. Evanna narrowed her eyes; she was no stranger to quick answers as flimsy cover-ups.

Dippet obviously hadn't caught the quick response (or was rather good at feigning disappointment), as he waved his hand dismissively, saying, "You may go, Tom."

Exchanging looks, the trio quickly followed Riddle back down the moving spiral staircase, out of the gargoyle statue door, and watched as he paused in the hall. He seemed to be lost in a deep thought.

"I don't like it," Evanna announced.

"Me either," Hermione agreed. "It's all a bit too convenient."

"You two sound like all those kids who think Evanna's the Heir of Slytherin. ' _Too convenient, she was found at the scene every time,_ '" Ron mimicked. "Let's at least see what happens, and then decide."

"Damn, I hate when you're right," Evanna muttered. "Well, let's go then. Riddle's on the move."

Riddle walked swiftly down the stairs, not stopping until they reached the Entrance Hall, where a tall wizard with long, sweeping auburn hair and a beard called to Riddle from the marble staircase.

"What are you doing, wandering around this late, Tom?"

The trio stared in shock at the fifty-year-younger Dumbledore.

"I had to see the headmaster, sir," said Riddle.

"Well, hurry off to bed," said Dumbledore, giving Riddle exactly the kind of penetrating stare Evanna knew so well (and disliked just as much). "Best not to roam the corridors these days. Not since . . ."

He sighed heavily, bade Riddle good night, and strode off. Riddle watched him walk out of sight and then, moving quickly, headed straight down the stone steps to the dungeons, with the trio in hot pursuit.

To Evanna's eternal disappointment, Riddle didn't lead them into a hidden passageway or a secret tunnel, but to the very dungeon in which they had Potions with Snape. The trio watched as Riddle closed the door almost all the way and peered intently through the crack.

It must've been an hour later when Riddle finally moved (interrupting their intense game of I Spy). He began to follow the sound of footsteps echoing through the passages. Evanna, Ron and Hermione, momentarily forgetting that they couldn't be seen or heard, crept silently behind Riddle, until they heard a new noise.

"C'mon . . . gotta get yeh outta here . . . C'mon now . . . in the box . . ."

"Is that . . . ?" Hermione asked, looking fearfully at her two friends.

Riddle suddenly jumped around the corner. So did the trio. They could see the dark outline of a huge boy who was crouching in front of an open door, a very large box next to it.

"Evening, Rubeus," said Riddle sharply.

The boy slammed the door shut and stood up. "What yer doin' down here, Tom?"

"It can't be . . ." Ron whispered in horror.

"It's all over," Riddle said, moving towards the boy. "I'm going to have to turn you in, Rubeus. They're talking about closing Hogwarts if the attacks don't stop."

"What d'yeh —"

"I don't think you meant to kill anyone. But monsters don't make good pets. I suppose you just let it out for exercise and — "

"It never killed no one!" said the large boy, backing against the closed door. From behind the door, Ron could hear sounds like a spider magnified by a hundred (trust him, he knew the noise; Fred and George always used the arachnophobia to prank him).

"Come on, Rubeus," said Riddle, moving yet closer. "The dead girl's parents will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure that the thing that killed their daughter is slaughtered . . ."

"It wasn't him!" roared the boy, his voice echoing in the dark passage. "He wouldn'! He never!"

"Stand aside," said Riddle, drawing out his wand.

Everything happened so fast that Evanna couldn't tell what really happened. She saw Riddle's spell make the door fly open, with such force that the boy was flung to the other wall, and something scuttled out and then it was all a sort of blur. There was another flash of a spell, a cry of anguish, and then the three of them were back on Ron's bed, looking out of breath and confused.

"Hagrid?!" Hermione gasped. "Hagrid opened the Chamber of Secrets?"

"I don't believe it," Evanna said stubbornly.

"Was that a giant spider?!" Ron asked, his voice filled with fear.

"I couldn't tell," Hermione said. "But that was definitely Hagrid! Wait — Evanna what are you doing?"

Evanna had grabbed the diary and a quill, nearly spilling the ink in her haste. She didn't answer, so Ron and Hermione peered over her shoulder as she wrote, _Who had this diary before us, Tom?_

In a few seconds, Riddle had answered. _**I cannot tell you. I was sworn to secrecy.**_

_You're a diary, dammit! Just tell me! Evanna scribbled furiously._

__**I'm sorry, Evanna, but I will not.** _ _

_Evanna threw the book to the floor with rage written across her face. "I don't trust that book."_

_After a few moments, Ron said, "I don't either. Dad always said, ' _Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can't see where it keeps its brain._ '"_

_"But it's the only lead we have! Even if Hagrid isn't the Heir — "_

_"He obviously isn't."_

_"He was obviously at the school during the same time as the Chamber was opened," Hermione continued as if Evanna hadn't said anything. "We should ask him about it."_

_"That'd be a cheerful visit," Ron muttered._

_"I don't think we should," Evanna protested. "We should wait. The attacks might be over." If she was honest, the only reason Evanna didn't want to confront Hagrid was that she thought Tom Riddle was more than he was letting on._

_"Fine, but I don't think these attacks will stop until someone figures everything out," Hermione said._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, how was that chapter? I know, Evanna's getting more of a vulgar mouth! (In my mind, as she gets older, she swears more and more. Just a heads up if you (like myself) don't like swears.) I liked this chapter, personally. I hope you did too!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	32. The Petrification of Loved Ones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 32: The Petrification of Loved Ones
> 
> A/N: Okay, this chapter is even longer than the other one, so you guys better be thankful XD Also, you may or may not dislike what I did in this chapter, but I'll explain the reasoning for my actions in the bottom A/N, so just chill, okay? (and wow I'm getting less and less reviews :( I love reviews, so please?)

"It could affect our whole future." Hermione's words rang in Evanna's mind as she contemplated the lists of class options. She was only twelve! She didn't want to think about her future yet!

Hermione had chosen every class that was available, which Evanna didn't see how she could possibly do, but didn't question it. Ron had chosen Divination and Care of Magical Creatures, hoping they would be easy classes. Dean, who, much like Evanna, had been raised by Muggles, was just closing his eyes and pointing his quill at random classes. Neville had been bombarded by tons of letters from his family with advice, but still ended up confused. Evanna, without any family members to get help from, received advice from her various friends.

"Depends where you want to go, Evanna," Percy Weasley had advised. "It's never too early to think about the future, so I'd recommend Divination. People say Muggle Studies is a soft option, but I personally think wizards should have a thorough understanding of the non-magical community, particularly if they're thinking of working in close contact with them — look at my father, he has to deal with Muggle business all the time. My brother Charlie was always more of an outdoor type, so he went for Care of Magical Creatures. Play to your strengths, Evanna."

Evanna still didn't know what career paths there were in the wizarding world, so the members of the Quidditch team listed some.

"There are all sorts of jobs. Obviously, a Quidditch player is a good career for you to consider," Oliver Wood said.

"You could become a Healer," Angelina suggested. "Or a teacher."

"You could work at the ministry," Alicia added. "There are tons of jobs there."

"You're an amazing artist, maybe you could get into the magical portrait business," Katie offered.

"You could always work at our shop once we get it," Fred said with a wink.

"I think you'd be a good auror too," George said.

"A what?" Evanna asked, looking over at George with interest.

"You know, they catch all the dark wizards," George tried to explain feebly.

"Like a police officer?" Evanna supplied, still confused. This just earned her confusion from the others.

"Yeah, like a police officer," Hermione agreed, finally joining the conversation. "Except with magic obviously."

"Right," Evanna said, trailing off. That would definitely be cool. In the end, she just chose the same classes as Ron, not wanting to decide her future at twelve years old.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna laughed as she, Fred and George walked through the common room to put their brooms away. Not to brag, but with the way they had been training, they were going to _cream_ Hufflepuff. But as she headed up the spiral staircase towards her dorm, Lavender met her halfway, looking distressed.

"Evanna, I don't want to alarm you or anything, but I think you've made an enemy."

"An enemy?" Evanna asked incredulously, as she followed Lavender up to their dormitory. She was shocked with what she saw.

The contents of her trunk had been strewn across the floor, her clothes and books were scattered everywhere, the sheets had been yanked off the bed, and the drawer in the bedside table had been pulled out completely, and lay on the half covered mattress. Evanna just gaped at the scene for a few moments. It could only be a Gryffindor. They were the only ones who knew the password. It was more than likely a female Gryffindor too. But she couldn't think of anybody who would want to do this. Finally pulling herself together, she began to clean up her things. Lavender quickly pitched in.

"Do you have any idea who it was?" Lavender asked, as she carefully replaced the drawer.

"Not a clue. Though I'll hopefully have some before we're done here," Evanna muttered, as she pushed her trunk off its side, under which she found a ripped piece of cloth. Picking it up gingerly, she examined it. "Actually, I may have already found something. A ripped piece of cloak. All we need to do is find a girl with a ripped cloak and we've found the culprit."

"A girl?" Lavender asked. "Couldn't it have been a boy?"

"Possible, but unlikely. Have you seen what happens when a boy tries to climb the stairs?" Evanna replied, with a chuckle. When Lavender shook her head, Evanna smirked and motioned for her to follow. The two girls went to the edge of the stairs, and peered over together. "Oi! Weasley!" Evanna called, pointing at Fred. "Could you come up here?"

Fred rolled his eyes; he knew that Evanna just wanted to see him fall down the stairs (as she had done a few times to her unsuspecting friends who were of the opposite gender). But nevertheless, he complied. Lavender watched as Fred ascended the staircase, only to find himself sliding down again. The stairs had become a slide, making it next to impossible for anyone to climb up. Fred gave the two girls a lazy salute before heading back over to his twin. Lavender giggled as the two headed back in to continue cleaning Evanna's belongings.

"How do you think the cloak got ripped?" Lavender asked, as she and Evanna both smoothed the blankets back onto the bed.

"My theory is when the perpetrator knocked over my trunk, a bit of their cloak got stuck under it, so when they pulled away, it ripped off," Evanna replied, beginning to gather up her books. She suddenly cocked her he to the side and mouthed some numbers as she counted the books she had stacked.

"What's wrong?" Lavender asked, crouching beside the redhead.

"One of my books is missing . . ." Evanna muttered. "But I don't understand why; it was just an empty diary."

"Why did you have an empty diary?"

"I am rubbish at keeping diaries," Evanna answered truthfully. "I always forget. I'll write one entry, then, like, three months later I'll write in it again. I don't know why I kept it, honestly."

"I suppose it's not a big loss that it was taken then," Lavender concluded, but frowned at Evanna's expression. "Was it a big loss?"

"No . . ." Evanna muttered. This was also truthful; she had planned to try and burn the diary anyways. "But why would someone go through all this trouble to steal a diary?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna had decided that she would not try to find the crook. In fact, she banished all thoughts of the diary from her mind. Today she would focus on Quidditch and nothing else.

The Hufflepuff Seeker passed the table and Evanna shouted, "Good luck!"

He turned to give her a smile and called back, "You too!" before continuing on his way.

"Why are you so bloody nice?" Fred asked with disgust.

"Golden rule, Freddie," was all Evanna said, confusing the twin greatly as she stood to gather her Quidditch supplies with Ron and Hermione.

Evanna suddenly stopped dead in her tracks just outside the Great Hall.

" _Kill this time . . . let me rip . . . tear . . ._ "

"I heard the voice again," Evanna whispered, looking fearful. "The last time I heard it was before the attack on Justin! Why am I the only one who hears it? It's just like me being the only one who can talk to snakes — "

" _Evanna_!" Hermione gasped suddenly. She seemed to be having a mental argument with herself, and finally said, "You go win your Quidditch game, I need to get to the library!"

"Do you need any help, Mione?" Ron called as the bushy-haired girl began to run up the stairs.

"Yes, that'd be great, Ron," Hermione called back. As Ron scampered after Hermione, they both yelled, "Good luck Evanna!"

"Bye," Evanna muttered, with a horrible feeling of dread forming in the pit of her stomach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So what did you figure out, Hermione?" Ron asked as the pair sat down in the library, with a large, and quite old, book in between them.

"I think I know what's been petrifying students!" Hermione exclaimed with glee. She began flipping quickly through the book, which was titled, _Most Macabre Monstrosities_. Ron watched intently, until she stopped on a page with an image of a sort of huge snake on it. "This is it, it must be!"

Ron leaned over and read the page aloud, "' _Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy, and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it._ '" Ron gasped. "Of course, it all makes sense!"

"Spiders flee before it — "

"Crowing of a rooster kills it, which is why the roosters have been killed — "

"It's a snake, which is why only Evanna can hear it — "

"But wait, if you die from looking it directly in the eyes, then why is nobody dead yet?" Ron asked, looking over at Hermione.

"Because nobody _has_ looked it directly in the eyes! Mrs. Norris saw its reflection in the water that was on the floor, Colin saw it through his camera, and Justin saw it through Nearly-Headless Nick, but Nick couldn't die because he's already dead!" Hermione looked triumphant. Then she deflated. "Wait, but how would it get around? It's too strange that nobody has seen it yet."

"The pipes?" Ron suggested. "That's why it can seemingly go through ceilings and walls."

"Brilliant!" Hermione praised, quickly scribbling _Pipes_ on the bottom of the page before tearing it out (Ron was too excited to ask about her defacing of library property). "Come on, we need to warn the teachers!"

"Wait, Evanna just heard the voice, remember? It might be nearby!" Ron pointed out. "We don't want to come face to face with this thing. Dying is _not_ on my list of things to do today."

"Excuse me," Hermione said, to an older girl who was just exiting the library as well. "Could we borrow a mirror?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna had momentarily forgotten about the disembodied voice as she mounted her broom, flying around the pitch with Fred and George to warm up for the game. She hoped that Hermione and Ron would be back soon though, to inform her about what they discovered.

"Ready to cream the other team?" Fred asked, grinning at his twin and best friend.

"You're a poet and you didn't even know it," Evanna joked. "But yes, I definitely am. I just hope Ron and Hermione can witness it."

"Aren't they already here?" George asked.

"I don't think so. They went off to the library to — "

"This match has been canceled!"

"What?!" Evanna gasped, staring down at Professor McGonagall, who was holding a purple megaphone and addressing the stadium at large.

"All students are to make their way back to the House common rooms, where their Heads of Houses will give them further information. As quickly as you can, please!"

There were plenty of complaints, especially from Oliver ("You can't cancel Quidditch!") but Professor McGonagall stood her ground.

As Evanna and the twins dismounted, Professor McGonagall called over to them. "Potter. Weasleys. You had better come with me."

Evanna glanced up at Fred and George, the twins looking just as confused as she was as they followed their transfiguration teacher into the school. The trio was even more confused when they were led to the Hospital Wing. Evanna's sick stomach came back. What had happened?

"This will be a bit of a shock," said Professor McGonagall in a surprisingly gentle voice as they approached the infirmary. "There has been another attack . . ."

Evanna knew what had happened before she even saw the inside of the Hospital Wing but she didn't want to believe her own premonition. Unfortunately, she was right.

The first thing she saw when they entered was Madam Pomfrey bending over a sixth-year girl with long, curly hair. Her tie declared that she was a Ravenclaw. Evanna's eyes then fell on the two beds next to her and she nearly fainted.

"Ron!" George cried.

"Hermione!" Fred gasped.

Evanna just burst out crying. George instinctively hugged her.

"They were found near the library," said Professor McGonagall. "I don't suppose either of you can explain this? It was on the floor next to them . . ."

She held up a small, circular mirror, one that looked like one a girl might use to adjust her makeup. The twins shook their heads, still looking horrified. Evanna managed to shake her head through her tears.

"I will escort you back to Gryffindor Tower," said Professor McGonagall heavily. "I need to address the students in any case."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"All students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities."

Evanna was still crying into George's shirt as Professor McGonagall rolled up her parchment and added, "I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward."

After she left, the common room burst into an uproar.

"That's three Gryffindors down, not counting a Gryffindor ghost, one Ravenclaw, and one Hufflepuff," said Lee Jordan, counting on his fingers. "Haven't any of the teachers noticed that the Slytherins are all safe? Isn't it obvious all this stuff's coming from Slytherin? The Heir of Slytherin, the monster of Slytherin — why don't they just chuck all the Slytherins out?"

Though many people applauded this, Evanna angrily cried out, " _No_! Honestly, not all Slytherins are bad! Listen, the monster has only been attacking Muggle-borns, and we all know that Salazar Slytherin was very concerned about blood status, so the likeliness of a Muggle-born Slytherin is very slim. It's not a matter of the Heir favouring their house, if the Heir is a Slytherin at all, it's a matter of them favouring blood!"

"Why do you know so much about it?" came a voice from the crowd. "I think _you're_ the Heir of Slytherin!"

"Oi, sod off!" Evanna yelled back, starting to get fed up with everybody. "Do you _honestly_ think I'd petrify my _best friends_ if I were the Heir?!"

"Wait, if Evanna's right and it's all about blood status, then explain Ron Weasley!" came another voice.

After a few moments of pondering, Evanna had a sudden inspiration. "Okay, think about it," she said, standing up on a table so that she could be seen, "the legend is that the Heir controls the monster, right? But what if they only control it so much? They can direct it on where to go and which person to petrify, but if said person were traveling in a group, maybe the monster would just have to petrify the lot of them. _Maybe_ ," Evanna continued, excitement growing within her, "the monster doesn't control who it petrifies at all. Maybe it's a sort of thing where if you just see it you get petrified. And maybe — "

Evanna fell off the table in shock. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on who you asked), she landed on Lee. "Sorry, Lee," she said hastily, jumping up. "I've just remembered something I need to do."

As Evanna tore upstairs, she neglected one thing. Or should she say two things.

"Evanna, what are you doing?" Fred asked from the bottom of the spiral stairs.

"Going to bed, g'night boys!" she called back, but the twins didn't buy it for a second.

"Brooms?" George asked, wondering if it were smart to fly in on the twelve-year-old.

Fred shook his head. "I have a feeling that if we just wait, she'll come back down."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna waited patiently until Parvati and Lavender fell asleep. She had remembered that she, Ron and Hermione had planned to go to ask Hagrid about the Chamber if there was another attack, and she was going to do it whether they were there or not. She doubted that he had ever even gone near the Chamber, but it was a starting place at least.

Grabbing her invisibility cloak, she snuck downstairs, and was in the process of pulling the hood up when two armchairs turned to face her. The Weasley twins were smirking at her floating head. "Going somewhere?" Fred asked smugly.

"Damn you, Weasleys," she muttered, flipping her currently invisible middle finger at them, unbeknownst to them of course.

"Look, you can't decline our help now," George said. "Ron and Hermione have been petrified, it's not safe for you to be going around alone."

"Argh, fine!" Evanna acquiesced, ripping off her cloak and motioning them over. "Come on, underneath here then. We're going to see Hagrid."

"What? Why?" they asked together, as they made sure the cloak covered the three of them fully.

"Let me explain," Evanna began, then paused and said, "No, it's too long. Let me sum it up. A magical diary which talked back to us and is a Slytherin known as Tom Riddle took us into his memories and we saw that he caught Hagrid with a monster he claimed to be the monster in the chamber, and even though I don't believe his theory, it's a starting place, so we're going to interrogate Hagrid for information."

"What?" Fred asked, not able to quite decipher what Evanna had said due to her rushed speech.

"I'll explain on the way then, come on," Evanna urged, pulling the twins with her out of the common room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whatever Hagrid had been expecting, it wasn't them. When the giant man flung open the door, Evanna had to back away to keep from getting hit by his crossbow. Fred and George exchanged glances.

"Oh," Hagrid said, lowering the weapon and staring at them. "What're you three doin' here?"

"We're here to interro — "

Fred stepped on the girl's toe and interjected, "Why were you aiming a crossbow at us?" He shot Evanna a look that clearly told her to be less blunt, but she just scowled at him.

"Nothin' — nothin' — " Hagrid muttered, obviously distracted as he ushered them inside. "I've bin expectin' — doesn' matter — Sit down — I'll make tea — "

"No tea necessary," Evanna said. "You've heard about — " Evanna couldn't bring herself to say their names, as if it would seal their fate. "You've heard what happened, haven't you?"

"Oh, I heard, all righ'," said Hagrid, a slight break in his voice.

"Well, we came to ask you about the — " Evanna was interrupted again, this time by a knock at the door.

Hagrid looked fearful, grabbing up his crossbow again. George pulled the cloak onto himself, his twin, and Evanna, and the three of them watched as Hagrid flung open the door again.

"Good evening, Hagrid."

It was Dumbledore. He entered, looking deadly serious, and was followed by a stranger with grey hair that was nearly as disheveled as Evanna's was, an anxious expression, and a very odd fashion sense.

"That's the Minister of Magic," George whispered, his breath tickling Evanna's ear, making her blush. "Cornelius Fudge."

The three of them watched in silence as Fudge told Hagrid that he was going to be sentenced to Azkaban, which Evanna knew from Tracey to be the wizarding prison. Hagrid went extremely pale at this, but then the door was opened and a third party entered.

Lucius Malfoy entered, looking just as cold as the day Evanna had seen him in Diagon Alley.

"Dammit, what does _he_ want?" Fred muttered, glaring at the blonde man as he berated Hagrid on his house.

"I simply called at the school and was told that the headmaster was here," Malfoy was saying.

"And what exactly did you want with me, Lucius?" said Dumbledore, fire blazing in his blue eyes.

" _Dreadful_ thing, Dumbledore," said Malfoy lazily, taking out a long roll of parchment, "but the governors feel it's time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension — you'll find all twelve signatures on it. I'm afraid we feel you're losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Three more this afternoon, wasn't it? At this rate, there'll be no Muggle-borns left at Hogwarts, and we all know what an _awful_ loss that would be to the school."

"Who wants to bet he threatened them to sign it?" Evanna muttered darkly, watching Fudge and Hagrid protest this while Dumbledore willingly went along with it. "How can he just _go along_ with this?!"

"Yeh can' take Dumbledore!" yelled Hagrid, expressing Fred's thoughts perfectly. "Take him away, an' the Muggle-borns won' stand a chance! There'll be killin' next!"

"Calm yourself, Hagrid," said Dumbledore sharply. "If the governors want my removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside — "

"But — " stuttered Fudge.

" _No_!" growled Hagrid.

"However," said Dumbledore, "you will find that I will only _truly_ have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."

"Admirable sentiments," said Malfoy, bowing. "We shall all miss your — er — highly individual way of running things, Albus, and only hope that your successor will manage to prevent any — ah — _killins_."

He strode to the cabin door, opened it, and bowed Dumbledore out. Fudge, fiddling with his bowler, waited for Hagrid to go ahead of him, but Hagrid stood his ground, took a deep breath, and said carefully, "If anyone wanted ter find out some _stuff_ , all they'd have ter do would be ter follow the _spiders_. That'd lead 'em right! That's all I'm sayin'."

But as he was about to follow Fudge through the door, he stopped again and said loudly, "An' someone'll need ter feed Fang while I'm away."

After a few moments of silence, Evanna ripped the invisibility cloak off of them. She immediately began freaking out. "Dumbledore gone, Hagrid gone, my two best friends gone, no suspects at all, and the only clue I have is to follow a bunch of insects!" She looked at the twins. "How are we going to ever figure out who the Heir is?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I know you all dislike that I petrified Ron, but hear me out, okay? Just the way I've adapted to Ron's character, I've made him more willing (and likely) to help out his friends, so I thought he would want to go help Hermione. Besides, I wanted a reason to add Evanna/everyone bonding ;)
> 
> Please review (even if it's just hate for petrifying Ron) ~Jayce


	33. The Monster Which Is Apparently Not Giant Spiders

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 33: The Monster Which Is Apparently Not Giant Spiders
> 
> A/N: Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than the last few have been recently, but it's about as long as I used to make it. I couldn't think of anything else to add, so I decided to just post it, because quite a few of you have been getting anxious to get an update. Again, I'M SORRY! :( Thanks for reading though :)

It seemed that all of Evanna's friends had made a consensus to make sure she wasn't alone without Ron and Hermione. They all made sure to sit with her during class, and walk with her, and ask how she was doing. Even in the common room they would keep her company. She found that a smile would creep on her face when she saw them approaching and that she would talk freely with them (as long as the subject was not on her petrified besties).

"All right, Evanna?" Seamus would call from across the hall, as he, Dean, Neville, Lavender and Parvati would run up to join her walking towards their next class.

In Potions, Tracey, Daphne and Blaise would sit with her and poke fun at Draco Malfoy behind his back.

Whenever they saw her, the members of the Quidditch team would shout out a greeting of some sort.

Even Ginny, who was generally very shy around Evanna, would wave when she passed her in the corridors.

Then, in Herbology, Ernie Macmillan, the Hufflepuff who had believed for so long that Evanna was the Heir, offered her a formal apology, which she accepted and agreed to sit with him, his friend Hannah, and Neville.

"Do you have any suspects of who the Heir of Slytherin might be, Evanna?" Neville asked, as they worked together to prune an Abyssinian Shrivelfigs.

When Evanna shook her head, Ernie commented, "What about that Draco Malfoy? He seems pretty — "

"I know it's not him," Evanna interrupted.

"How?" Hannah asked.

"I have my sources," Evanna replied, winking.

"She has friends in Slytherin," Neville explained, at Ernie and Hannah's confused and intrigued expressions. "They're actually okay, as far as Slytherins go."

Evanna tuned out the rest of the conversation when something caught her eye. Several spiders were fleeing across the grass towards the forbidden forest. _Follow the spiders._ Evanna knew what she was doing tonight at least.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Because all of the Gryffindors had to be back in the common room by six o'clock, the common room was very full, and didn't usually empty until very late at night. Evanna needed to wait until she was alone to go sneaking off, so she passed the time by doing some drawing. She sat next to Dean, as they both sketched contently in the slowly emptying common room (though Evanna was starting to feel anything but content, as they were about to find out).

"What are you drawing, Evanna?" Neville asked, looking over at her drawing. Then his smile was replaced by a sad frown. "Oh."

Evanna had been drawing Ron and Hermione as she had seen them last; petrified on two beds in the Hospital Wing. Teardrops were beginning to stain the paper as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut, biting her lip to keep from sobbing.

George, who had been playing Exploding Snap with Fred, Ginny and Seamus, quietly went over to sit next to Evanna, moving her sketchbook away from her lap, so that her tears wouldn't do anymore damage, and just let her hug him tightly, tears pouring down her face. Nobody knew what to say, so they watched silently.

"I j-just m-m-miss them!" Evanna hiccuped, trying to stop crying, not wanting to embarrass herself any further in front of her friends (though none of them were judging her; they all would be acting the same way if their best friends had been petrified).

"We all do, Evanna," Seamus whispered. "But I suppose none of us will miss them as much as you do."

"The good thing is that Professor Sprout says the Mandrakes are getting closer and closer to being ready to unpetrify everyone," Neville piped up. "So they'll be back in no time!"

Evanna nodded in agreement, still hiccuping. "I think I'm going to bed," Evanna muttered, wiping her eyes, gathering her things, and heading upstairs. Parvati and Lavender, who were gossiping quietly, didn't bother Evanna as she slipped into bed fully clothed, not forgetting about her midnight task. The spiders would be stalked soon enough.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before they went to sleep at night, Fred and George would always check the Marauder's Map. It had become regular routine since the year before, when Evanna and company were always sneaking out, and they hadn't stopped doing it since. It was lucky they hadn't, as tonight the first thing they saw was Evanna's dot sneaking out of the common room.

"Follow her?" George asked, looking over at his twin.

"Follow her," Fred agreed, and the two slipped quietly downstairs, in quick pursuit of the young redhead. Obviously they didn't have an invisibility cloak like she did, but they had mastered the art of stealth (when pranking, being able to sneak around unnoticed is pretty much mandatory) and memorized all of the secret passageways, they almost didn't need the map anymore.

They couldn't see the girl physically, but her dot on the map told them she was headed towards Hagrid's hut, so they took a few secret passages to catch up to her. They had a hunch that she was going to follow the spiders, just like Hagrid had cryptically hinted they should do, and she hated putting her friends in danger, which is most likely why she was going alone, but what made them wonder was why she, Ron and Hermione had begun to try and solve the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets in the first place. They knew that Evanna loved mystery, but she had always claimed that the year previous was enough adventure to last her a lifetime. So why voluntarily go out to the Forbidden Forest in the dead of night to follow some arachnids to who knows where?

Evanna lit her wand with a quiet, "Lumos," and hurried along through the trees, Fang at her heels, following a trail of spiders, completely unawares to the two identical boys who were following as well. She was really nervous about this whole thing, but couldn't think of anything else to do. If it turned out to be a red herring, she was _so_ going to kill someone.

To be honest, she was already scared, no matter how hard she pretended not to be. It was dark, chilly, and ominous, especially with only the glow of her wand to keep her company, and chilling noises that seemed to be a hundred times amplified in the dark.

She glanced over at Fang, who was sniffing alongside her lazily. She almost wished she had informed someone of where she was going. If she got hurt or worse when she was out here . . . She shook the thought from her head and continued her trek through the quickly darkening forest.

A little ways behind her, both their wands lit as well, Fred and George were following her. They followed in silence for a while, but silence was boring.

"Where do you think the spiders will lead her?" Fred asked in a hushed tone so Evanna wouldn't hear them.

George shrugged. "Hopefully to some answers."

Another bit of silence, and then George said, "I hope that following her was a waste of time." When Fred looked curiously over at him, George explained, "If nothing happens to her, then there would've been no need for us to follow."

"Then yes, I agree," Fred said. "I hope it's all a waste of time for us. But I hope it's not a waste of time for her. I hope she gets the answers she needs."

George nodded in agreement. After another period of silence, George stopped walking. "Listen," he whispered. "Is that . . . An engine?"

A sudden blaze of light hit the twins, shielding their eyes, they looked over and saw —

"Dad's car!" Fred gasped. "So this is where Ron and Vanna lost it!"

"It seems to have developed the ability to think for itself," George mused, walking around the muddied and scratched car in wonder. "Amazing."

"Wait, where did Evanna go?" Fred asked after snapping out of his awe.

"Dammit!" George muttered after looking around. "How are we going to find her in this forest?"

Then, as if reading each others thoughts, the twins turned to face the car.

"Forge, I think I have an idea."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna scared in horror up at the huge spider before her. She had not signed up for this.

She had been brought to this place by another spider, which was smaller than the one before her but still much larger than herself, and there were hundreds of other spiders, big and small, gathered around them.

"What is it?" the biggest spider said, clicking his pincers rapidly.

"A human, Aragog," clicked the spider who had caught Evanna.

"Is it Hagrid?" said Aragog, moving closer, his eight milky eyes wandering vaguely, making Evanna realize that he was blind.

"Stranger," the spider responded.

"Kill it," Aragog said dismissively. "I was sleeping . . ."

"Wait, I'm a friend of Hagrid's!" Evanna cried out. "He's in trouble and I need to talk to you!"

Aragog paused and turned back to face Evanna, examining her closely. "What sort of trouble, human?"

"They think, up at the school, that Hagrid's been setting a — a — something on students. They've taken him to Azkaban," Evanna replied, glancing around for an escape route if need be.

"But that was years ago," said Aragog fretfully. "Years and years ago. I remember it well. That's why they made him leave the school. They believed that I was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free."

"So you're not the monster in the Chamber?" Evanna asked with relief. This meant Hagrid was innocent and Tom was wrong and perhaps a liar.

"I!" said Aragog, clicking angrily. "I was not born in the castle. I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in the castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, and a good man. When I was discovered, and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest ever since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid's goodness . . ."

"So you never attacked anyone?" Evanna clarified, just in case.

"Never," croaked the old spider. "It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and the quiet . . ."

"But then . . . Do you know what did kill that girl?" Evanna asked. "Because whatever it is, it's back and attacking people again — "

Her words were drowned by a loud outbreak of clicking and the rustling of many long legs shifting angrily; large black shapes shifted all around her.

"The thing that lives in the castle," said Aragog, "is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school."

"What is it?" said Evanna urgently, glancing nervously around; the spiders seemed to be closing in.

"We do not speak of it!" said Aragog fiercely. "We do not name it! I never even told Hagrid the name of that dread creature, though he asked me, many times."

"Well," Evanna said with a large, nervous smile on her face, beginning to back away as the spiders drew nearer still, "thank you for this vital information, and I'll just be going now. Tell your wife I say hi!"

"Go?" said Aragog slowly. "I think not . . ."

"I would _love_ to stay longer, but — "

"My sons and daughters do not harm Hagrid, on my command. But I cannot deny them fresh meat, when it wanders so willingly into our midst. Good-bye, friend of Hagrid."

Evanna screamed as she pulled out her wand, knowing that she was outnumbered. Oh, how she wished she had brought someone along!

Suddenly, thundering towards her, came Mr. Weasley's car, with Fred and George in the front seats. The car skidded to a stop in front of her, and the back doors were flung open.

"Get in!" Fred shouted. Evanna pushed Fang into the backseat, quickly climbing inside herself. The doors closed behind her and the car sped off. Evanna said nothing as the car jostled through the forest, just looked out the back, watching as the distance between them and the spiders got larger and larger.

Once they had finally reached the edge of the forest and the car had driven back into the thicket, Evanna snapped. She was unsure of how to react, being both angry at them for continuously invading her privacy and thankful that they saved her life. She first hugged them both tightly, then hit them, then began to yell at them, which changed from yelling insults to compliments.

"Evanna, _calm down!_ "

Evanna looked up at the twins with tears in her eyes. "I just need a hug."

Without hesitation, George opened his arms and Evanna plowed into him. They swayed slightly on the spot and George rubbed Evanna's head in what he hoped was a soothing way. "It'll be alright, Eva. You'll see."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, as Evanna got ready in the morning, her head was overflowing with thoughts. Thoughts about the night before mostly. She was trying to remember everything that Aragog had said. She had been trying to plan an escape route at the time, so she couldn't properly remember what he had said. She definitely remembered him saying where the body of the dead girl had been found, but couldn't she remember . . .

"Good morning, Evanna," Lavender said cheerfully before she disappeared into the bathroom.

"Morning," Evanna said too late, still thinking and trying to braid her hair at the same time.

"Would you like me to do that for you, Evanna?" Parvati asked kindly.

Evanna nodded gratefully, sitting in front of Parvati's bed, allowing the girl to begin the braiding process. Parvati made small talk as she braided, doing a more extravagant braid than Evanna usually would have. Evanna didn't mind though. It was a nice change.

Evanna, still distracted, walked down to breakfast with Parvati and Lavender, sitting across from Ginny, who was looking nervous. Ginny looked up at Evanna, catching the older girl's eye.

"Hey Gin," Evanna grinned, shaking the other thoughts from her mind. "What's up?"

Ginny had no idea what to say. Should she really go through with telling Evanna that she thought _she herself_ was the Heir of Slytherin?

"I think . . ." Ginny stopped. What would Evanna do if she found out? "I think you should talk to Moaning Myrtle."

Ginny, being as perceptive as she was, upon finding out from Tom that the girl who died fifty years ago had died in a bathroom, deduced that the girl was none other than Moaning Myrtle. Giving this information to Evanna might help, right?

Evanna seemed to realize the same thing, because her eyes widened and so did her grin. "Thanks Ginny!" But as Ginny stood to leave, Evanna saw that part of her cloak had been ripped off. "Wait, Ginny, is your cloak ripped?"

But Ginny had just gone out of earshot. Evanna shook off the thought that _Ginny Weasley of all people_ might have broken into her dorm. Instead she focused on the new information the freckle-faced girl had just given her. It was definitely time to pay the ghost another visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The next chapter will be Evanna figuring everything out and saving everybody from everything :D I can't wait! (I'll try to update that one faster, again, sorry!)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	34. How Myrtle Died

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 34: How Myrtle Died
> 
> A/N: Yay, a much much faster update than before! Sorry about that other chapter, but here's this one and hopefully the next one will be soon too! Also, Guest, thank you, but less swearing would be appreciated next time ^^ (also, 911weasleytwins, thank you yet again for your amazing review, I'm flattered to be someone's favourite fem!Harry fic :D)

Evanna wasn't quite sure how she would get to talk to Moaning Myrtle. With the teachers escorting them everywhere, and her friends stuck to her like glue (not that she didn't like the gesture but still), it was nearly impossible to get anywhere alone. Fortunately, there was one incompetent teacher who might just fall for an act . . .

"Mark my words," Lockhart said, as he ushered the class through the corridors. "The first words out of those poor Petrified people's mouths will be ' _It was Hagrid_.' Frankly, I'm astounded Professor McGonagall thinks all these security measures are necessary."

"I agree, sir," Evanna piped up, shocking her classmates.

"Thank you, Evanna," said Lockhart graciously while they waited for a long line of Hufflepuffs to pass. "I mean, we teachers have quite enough to be getting on with, without walking students to classes and standing guard all night . . ."

"You deserve some time to prepare your next class," Seamus agreed, as Lavender nodded her head along. Evanna shot them grateful looks. "Why don't you do that now? We only have a corridor to go."

Once Lockhart had gone, Seamus muttered, "Whatever you're doing better be worth it, Evanna."

"Thanks, guys," Evanna muttered back, darting off towards Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. But she had barely gotten a corridor away when —

"Now where are _you_ off to, Potter?"

"Damn you, Weasleys!" Evanna cried, whipping around to face Fred and George. "Do you have to interfere with _everything_?!"

They exchanged glances before answering together, "Yes."

Evanna let out a cry of annoyance. "Fine! I was just going — !"

"Potter! Weasleys! What are you doing out of class?"

Professor McGonagall, her mouth in a thinner line than usual, had just come up, and now stood awaiting an explanation.

Luckily, Evanna had already planned out an excuse for such a time. "I was just going to see Hermione and Ron," she said, a slight tremble in her voice. "To tell them that the Mandrakes were almost ready . . ."

"We just happen to have a free block and were escorting her," George added, catching on immediately.

"Plus, Ron is our brother," Fred pointed out. "And Hermione was our friend too, if not as close as Evanna — "

Evanna suddenly burst into tears. She had become rather good at doing it spontaneously. Plus, whenever she thought about her lifeless best friends, she did feel like crying. "I j-just m-m-m-miss them," she sobbed, rubbing her eyes.

"Of course," Professor McGonagall said, with a tear in her own eye, nearly surprising Evanna, though she supposed that it must've looked pretty sad. "Of course, I realize this has all been hardest on the friends of those who have been . . . I quite understand. Yes, Potter, of course you may visit Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley. I will inform Professor Binns where you've gone. Tell Madam Pomfrey I have given my permission."

The trio had no choice but to go to the Hospital Wing now, and, on the way, Evanna filled the twins in on her plan to talk with Myrtle. But she stopped talking as soon as she saw Ron and Hermione.

They were still and cold, just as she had seen them last, just as that tear stained page in her sketchbook depicted, just as she had nightmares about.

Fred and George explained to Madam Pomfrey what they were doing as Evanna sat quietly next to Ron and Hermione, a couple of tears slipping down her cheeks as she began to talk to them as if they weren't petrified. Madam Pomfrey muttered something about it being useless to talk to petrified people, but scurried off as the twins went over to Evanna.

". . . so we're going to go talk to Myrtle and see if she knows anything. Granted, when you two wake up you'll probably be able to tell us everything." Evanna gave a watery laugh. But soon her laughter had turned to sobs.

As George turned to comfort her, as he so often did, Fred went to sit by Hermione. He took her hand, in what he hoped was a reassuring way, but he found her hand wasn't empty.

"Hey, I think I found something," Fred said, grabbing the attention of George and Evanna and luckily not Madam Pomfrey, who was on the other end of the room. He pried Hermione's hand open carefully and pulled out a piece of paper. Once uncrumpled, Fred recognized it as a page that had been ripped from a library book, which was a very un-Hermione-like thing to do, but, he supposed, they must've been in a hurry.

The three of them crowded around the paper, reading it over in their heads, their eyes widening as they finished.

"A Basilisk!" George gasped. "It all makes sense!"

"Of course! And nobody really looked it in the eyes because they were looking its reflection or looking at it through something!" Evanna added, a grin spreading across her face.

"No wonder Ron and Hermione were found with that mirror! They weren't about to risk looking it in the eyes," Fred exclaimed.

Evanna pointed to a word scrawled across the bottom of the page that was obviously in Hermione's handwriting. "Pipes! That's how it's been getting around, that's how nobody's noticed it, that's how I've heard it seemingly move through the ceilings! Wait . . ." Evanna's eyes were growing even wider now. "You don't think that maybe, just maybe, the entrance to the Chamber was in a bathroom? A bathroom a certain girl died in? A bathroom that maybe said girl never left?"

"Moaning Myrtle," the boys whispered unanimously.

"We are _so_ smart," Evanna grinned. "We should go to the staffroom and tell Professor McGonagall. It's nearly break."

The three practically sprinted to the staffroom, trying to get there without interruption. But once they arrived, there was a magically magnified announcement, stating, "All students to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staffroom. Immediately, please."

"No!" Evanna cried. "Not another attack! Not now!"

"Come on." Fred and George grabbed Evanna's arms and pulled her into a wardrobe filled with the teachers cloaks.

"What are we doing?" Evanna hissed. "We should just stay out in the open and tell them when they come in!"

"And miss what happened? No way!" Fred said. "They'll just listen to what we have to say and shoo us out. Let's at least hear what happened first."

Evanna huffed, but the teachers were already beginning to file into the room, so she stayed put hidden with the twins, listening to the teachers discuss the tragedy that had occurred.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Do you think she's still — " George gulped, unable to say alive.

Evanna said nothing. It didn't make any sense. She was a pureblood, why would she have been taken into the Chamber? One might argue that Ron was a pureblood too, but he had been with two Muggle-borns. There was no good reason for Ginny Weasley to have been taken into the Chamber of Secrets.

"We have to do something!" Fred yelled, slamming his fist on the table. "We can't just sit around!"

"Then what do you propose we do?" George asked, and Evanna couldn't help but notice that the twins both had different emotions about this. George seemed more sad and Fred seemed more angry.

"We talk to Lockhart! Tell him what we know! He's going into the Chamber anyways!" Fred demanded.

Evanna and George, with no better ideas, went along with him. The rest of the Gryffindors didn't stop them from leaving the common room, though there were a few looks from their friends.

But once they reached Lockhart's office, they were immediately disappointed. He answered the door, looking nervous and not at all like he was preparing to venture deep into a mysterious Chamber and fight an unknown beast.

"Oh — Miss Potter — Mr. Weasleys — " Lockhart muttered, looking at each of them through a crack in the door. "I'm rather busy at the moment — if you would be quick — "

"Professor, we've got some information for you," said George. "We think it'll help you."

"Er — well — it's not terribly —" The side of Lockhart's face that they could see looked very uncomfortable. "I mean — well — all right — "

The first thing Evanna noticed when he let them in was that the office was almost completely bare. He seemed to have been packing everything up into two large trunks and some boxes. She immediately realized what was going on and spun to face the cowardly teacher, wand already out.

"You're leaving!" she shrieked, her voice filled with rage. "You're abandoning the school! You're leaving an innocent girl down in the Chamber of Secrets! You're leaving!"

Evanna had to be physically restrained to keep from attacking the professor. Lockhart looked even more scared as he stammered, "Er, well, yes. Urgent call — unavoidable — got to go — "

"What about our sister?!" Fred yelled, pulling his wand out as well.

"Well, as to that — most unfortunate — No one regrets more than I — "

"What about all that stuff you did in your books?" George asked suspiciously, taking out his wand too and releasing Evanna, who didn't attack yet, but did give a bark of laughter.

"Open your eyes! He made it up! Nobody this incompetent could possibly have done any of those things," Evanna laughed.

"She's right," Lockhart admitted, looking nervously at the three wands that were still pointed at him. "My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think I'd done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He'd look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at all. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a hairy chin. I mean, come on — "

"What?! I thought you just made it up, not stole the credit from other people!" Evanna cried.

"It's not nearly as simple as that," Lockhart insisted. "There was work involved. I had to track these people down. Ask them exactly how they managed to do what they did. Then I had to put a Memory Charm on them so they wouldn't remember doing it. If there's one thing I pride myself on, it's my Memory Charms. No, it's been a lot of work, Evanna. It's not all book signings and publicity photos, you know. You want fame, you have to be prepared for a long hard slog." He sighed. "Only one thing left to do I'm afraid."

He pulled out his wand.

"Awfully sorry, but I'll have to put a Memory Charm on you now. Can't have you blabbing my secrets all over the place. I'd never sell another book — "

Evanna, thinking quickly, yelled, "Expelliarmus!"

Lockhart was thrown backwards and his wand flew from his hand. Both Fred and George grappled for it, accidentally breaking it in the process. "Er, oops."

"It doesn't matter," Evanna said dismissively. "He's not going to need it where he's going."

"Azkaban?" Lockhart gasped fearfully.

"Oh, not just yet," Evanna said, grinning maniacally. "You're joining us into the Chamber of Secrets."

Lockhart's face whitened exceptionally.

"To the bathroom?" George asked.

"To the bathroom," Evanna agreed.

"The bathroom?" Lockhart asked.

"Shut up," Fred said, pocketing Lockhart's snapped wand. It was still held together by a bit of wood, like Ron's had been. He might as well hang onto it, who knows when they might need a backfiring wand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, it's you," Myrtle said, as Evanna approached her with Lockhart and twins. "What do you want this time?"

"To ask you how you died," said Evanna.

Myrtle's whole aspect changed at once. She looked as though she had never been asked such a flattering question.

"Ooooh, it was dreadful," she said with relish. "It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a boy speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then — " Myrtle swelled importantly, her face shining. "I died."

"How?" said Evanna.

"No idea," said Myrtle in hushed tones. "I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away . . . And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she'd ever laughed at my glasses."

"Where exactly did you see the eyes?" asked Evanna.

"Somewhere there," said Myrtle, pointing vaguely toward the sink in front of her toilet.

George and Evanna examined the sink intently as Fred kept his wand on Lockhart. It was an exceptionally ordinary sink, but George pointed out a tiny snake carved into the side of one of the taps, which didn't work when he turned it.

"Try speaking to it in Parseltongue," he suggested in a whisper, Evanna blushing slightly as his breath warmed her ear.

She concentrated on the small, inanimate snake.

"Open," she tried, but George shook his head.

"English."

Evanna took a deep breath in, examining the snake again. It looked slightly real when the light glinted off it like that.

"Open."

This time, from her mouth came a sort of strangled hissing noise and and at once the tap glowed with a brilliant white light and began to spin. Next second, the sink began to move; the sink, in fact, sank, right out of sight, leaving a large pipe exposed, a pipe wide enough for a man to slide into.

"I'm going in," Evanna announced, without hesitation.

"We are too," Fred and George said together.

"Well, you hardly seem to need me," said Lockhart, with a shadow of his old smile. "I'll just — "

"Oh no," Fred said, pushing Lockhart forwards. "You're going first."

Lockhart looked like he was going to argue, but shut his mouth when he contemplated the three wands aimed at him. He sat at the edge and, with a deep breath in, slid down into the Chamber.

Evanna followed suite, with a last grin at the twins before she disappeared from sight. As she slid down the disgusting slide, she could hear Fred and George behind her and Lockhart in front. Once at the bottom, she dusted herself off and helped her friends to their feet.

"Not that impressive, is it?" Fred asked with a goofy grin despite the situation.

"Because we're just in a tunnel, idiot," Evanna grinned, not even pretending to be mad at him.

The four looked on into the tunnel ahead. The three with access to wands lit theirs with a quick "Lumos,'' and even then they couldn't see far into the dark passage. Nevertheless they began their trek through the tunnel, ready to shut their eyes immediately should there be any signs of movement. They didn't want to die after all.

They were completely silent, other than their breathing, until someone stepped on the skull of a rat. It was then they realized that the floor was littered with the bones of small animals and something that looked like a giant snake's skin that it had shed, which did make sense considering that a Basilisk was basically a giant snake, and had scared Evanna out of her wits.

Apparently, Lockhart was scared too.

"He's fainted, the — " Fred began, but Lockhart jumped up and tackled Fred to the floor, grabbed his broken wand from the boy's pocket and aimed it at him.

"The adventure ends here!" he said, ignoring Evanna and George's raised wands. "I shall take a bit of this skin back up to the school, tell them I was too late to save the girl, and that you three _tragically_ lost your minds at the sight of her mangled body — say goodbye to your memories!"

He raised his broken wand high over his head and yelled, "Obliviate!"

The wand exploded with the force of a small bomb. Evanna ran with George, him trying to cover her from getting crushed by the massive rocks falling right and left, both of them slipping slightly on the snakeskin that lay across the floor. When the rocks had ceased falling, they both realized something horrible.

"FRED!"

He had been pinned underneath Lockhart before the rocks fell, and he was nowhere in sight now. There was a large wall of rock between them and where Lockhart had been moments before was now blocked from their sight.

They both exhaled sighs of relief when Fred's coughing came from the other side of the rock, along with a disgruntled, " _What?_ "

"Are you alive?" Evanna called.

" _Of course not_ ," Fred retorted sardonically. "This git's not either; he got hit with his own spell. Hasn't he learned that you shouldn't use a broken wand? Ron could've told him that." There was a noise of pain; it seemed that Fred had just kicked Lockhart in the shins (or somewhere worse). "I'm going to try and shift some of this rock. I've still got my wand, I could blow it apart — "

"Don't be an idiot, Gred," George said. "The tunnel will just cave in more. But moving the rocks is definitely a good idea, we could try from our end too — "

"Do you want to find Ginny dead?!" Evanna cried. Both Fred and George were shocked into silence. "You can stay if you want George, but I'm going to keep going! We've wasted enough time as it is, and I am going to kill whoever the stupid Heir is!" Evanna had a fiery resoluteness in her eyes, which just made George love her more (not that she knew it). "Now are you coming or not, George?"

George swallowed. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm coming. Can you handle this wall yourself, Freddie?" He had directed his voice back to the other side of the rocks.

"Yeah. Go avenge our sister, would you?" Fred sounded almost like he was crying.

Evanna nodded. "Let's go."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I enjoyed writing it! And the next chapter will be the face-off between Evanna and Tom Riddle (and a bit of George :P)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	35. I am Lord Voldemort

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 35: I am Lord Voldemort
> 
> A/N: OKAY *claps hands together, indicating that we are going to get down to business* A few things:
> 
> One, WOO HOO BOOK TWO IS ALMOST DONE! Probably just one more chapter and then book three! I'm very excited about this.
> 
> Two, I'm also posting this fic on Archive of our Own, so if you see it there, it's not somebody stealing it, it's actually me :D
> 
> If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask! Love you guys! Thanks for reading!

" _Ginny._ "

As soon as Evanna had opened the serpent-encrusted wall with Parseltongue, George had sprinted into the chamber, running through the long, dimly-lit room towards the figure of a small girl on the floor with bright red hair. Evanna began pounding after him immediately, calling his name.

George fell to the young ginger's side and began checking for her pulse frantically. He finally tossed his wand aside and grabbed the girl up so he could put his ear against her chest. He breathed out a sigh of relief. "She's alive."

"George!" Evanna warned, wand at the ready.

George looked up. A young man had picked up his wand from the floor. The man was tall, maybe even taller than George himself, and handsome, with black hair and a strange sort of blur outlining him. He had to have been in fifth or sixth year. George looked over at Evanna, who was looking outraged, with a different sort of fury than she had looked towards Lockhart. This was pure anger.

She hissed, " _I knew you couldn't be trusted_."

The man smirked, twirling George's wand between his fingers. "You're quite a smart child, Miss Potter."

"Who are you?" George asked, not quite understanding. The man wore a Slytherin tie, but the only Slytherins he had seen Evanna interact with were Tracey, Daphne and Blaise, so how did she know this man?

"Oh, I apologize, George Weasley," the man chuckled, and George stiffened. How did this man know his name? He was positive they had never met before.

"I," the man continued, "am Tom Riddle."

"He's a memory from fifty years ago," Evanna said, shocking George. "He was preserved in that diary," she gestured to a small book by Ginny's side, which George hadn't noticed in his rush to help his sister, "and, now I'm just guessing, he is the Heir of Slytherin."

Tom clapped his hands with an impressed smirk. "Correct on all counts. You obviously have your mother's brains."

"How do you know my mother?" Evanna asked, wand still raised. "You were at Hogwarts before her time."

"I have my ways."

George was really beginning to get scared of this person, this memory, especially since said memory was in possession of George's wand, leaving the boy defenseless.

"But I would love to hear more of your theories, Evanna." Tom leaned forwards with a menacing smile. "Do tell."

"Well, Ginny was the one who stole the diary back from me," Evanna said, keeping her cool extraordinarily well considering the circumstances. "I could tell because of her ripped cloak. Which makes me think that the book I thought I saw Lucius Malfoy slip into her cauldron way back when in Diagon Alley was this diary. It's the diary she's been writing in every time I saw her. She has been pouring herself into you all year. And that makes me think that you have something to do with everything that's been happening this year."

"Right again. Allow me to tell you the story," Tom said. "Ginny Weasley has opened her heart and spilled all her secrets to an invisible stranger."

"You," said Evanna coldly.

"Yes, but more accurately, the diary," corrected Tom. " _My_ diary. Little Ginny's been writing in it for months and months, telling me all her pitiful worries and woes — how her brothers tease her, how she had to come to school with secondhand robes and books, how she doesn't think _anyone_ would _ever_ like her . . .

"It's very _boring_ , having to listen to the silly little troubles of an eleven-year-old girl. But I was patient. I wrote back. I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply _loved_ me. _No one's ever understood me like you, Tom . . . I'm so glad I've got this diary to confide in . . . It's like having a friend I can carry around in my pocket . . ._ "

Tom laughed, a high, cold laugh that didn't suit him. George shivered.

"If I say it myself, Evanna, I've always been able to charm the people I needed. So Ginny poured out her soul to me, and her soul happened to be exactly what I wanted . . . I grew stronger and stronger on a diet of her deepest fears, her darkest secrets. I grew powerful, far more powerful than little Miss Weasley. Powerful enough to start feeding Miss Weasley a few of my secrets, to start pouring a little of my soul back into her . . ."

"Ginny Weasley opened the Chamber of Secrets," Evanna murmured quietly.

"No!" George cried.

"Yes, George, she did," Tom said with another horrible laugh. "She strangled the school roosters and daubed threatening messages on the walls. She set the Serpent of Slytherin on four Mudbloods, and the Squib's cat.

"Of course, she didn't know what she was doing at first. It was very amusing. I wish you could have seen her new diary entries . . . far more interesting, they became . . . _Dear Tom_ ," he recited, watching George's horrified face. The horror seemed to amuse him. " _I think I'm losing my memory. There are rooster feathers all over my robes and I don't know how they got there. Dear Tom, I can't remember what I did on the night of Halloween, but a cat was attacked and I've got paint all down my front. Dear Tom, Percy keeps telling me I'm pale and I'm not myself. I think he suspects me . . . There was another attack today and I don't know where I was. Tom, what am I going to do? I think I'm going mad . . . I think I'm the one attacking everyone, Tom!_

"It took a very long time for stupid little Ginny to stop trusting her diary," said Tom. "Once she started gaining friends over time, thanks to you, Evanna, her suspicions grew. Especially when she started hanging out with that Slytherin girl. Ginny could practically be a Slytherin herself. So she finally tried to dispose of it. Of _me_. And that's where _you_ came in, Evanna. You found it, and I couldn't have been more delighted. Of all the people who could have picked it up, it was _you_ , the very person I was most anxious to meet . . ."

"And why did you want to meet me?" Evanna asked.

"Oh, have you not figured it out yet? Well, you see, Ginny told me all about you, Evanna," said Tom. "Your whole fascinating history." His eyes roved over the lightning scar on Evanna's forehead, and their expression grew hungrier. "I knew I must find out more about you, talk to you, meet you if I could. So I decided to show you my famous capture of that great oaf, Hagrid, to gain your trust — "

"And you failed to do so," said Evanna, his voice now shaking. "You only made me suspect you. And you framed Hagrid, didn't you?"

Tom laughed his high laugh again.

"It was my word against Hagrid's, Evanna. Well, you can imagine how it looked to old Armando Dippet. On the one hand, Tom Riddle, poor but brilliant, parentless but so brave, school prefect, model student . . . on the other hand, big, blundering Hagrid, in trouble every other week, trying to raise werewolf cubs under his bed, sneaking off to the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls . . . but I admit, even _I_ was surprised how well the plan worked. I thought _someone_ must realize that Hagrid couldn't possibly be the Heir of Slytherin. It had taken _me_ five whole years to find out everything I could about the Chamber of Secrets and discover the secret entrance . . . as though Hagrid had the brains, or the power!

"Only the Transfiguration teacher, Dumbledore, seemed to think Hagrid was innocent. He persuaded Dippet to keep Hagrid and train him as gamekeeper. Yes, I think Dumbledore might have guessed . . . Dumbledore never seemed to like me as much as the other teachers did . . ."

"Dumbledore does have a creepy way of know those sorts of things," Evanna agreed. George still couldn't see how she was so nonchalant. He couldn't _speak_ , he was so angry.

"Well, he certainly kept an annoyingly close watch on me after Hagrid was expelled," said Tom carelessly. "I knew it wouldn't be safe to open the Chamber again while I was still at school. But I wasn't going to waste those long years I'd spent searching for it. I decided to leave behind a diary, preserving my sixteen-year-old self in its pages, so that one day, with luck, I would be able to lead another in my footsteps, and finish Salazar Slytherin's noble work."

"But that's not your goal any longer, is it?" Evanna asked, her interest piquing. "Otherwise someone would've died already."

"Correct. For many months now, my new target has been — you."

Tom smirked at Evanna. This girl was too smart for her own good. He hated her.

"Imagine how angry I was when the next time my diary was opened, it was Ginny who was writing to me, not you. She saw you with the diary, you see, and panicked. What if you found out how to work it, and I repeated all her secrets to you? What if, even worse, I told you who'd been strangling roosters? So the foolish little brat waited until your dormitory was deserted and stole it back. But I knew what I must do. It was clear to me that you were on the trail of Slytherin's heir. From everything Ginny had told me about you, I knew you would go to any lengths to solve the mystery — particularly if your best friends were attacked. And Ginny had told me the whole school was buzzing because you could speak Parseltongue . . .

"So I made Ginny write her own farewell on the wall and come down here to wait. She struggled and cried and became _very_ boring. But there isn't much life left in her . . . She put too much into the diary, into me. Enough to let me leave its pages at last . . . I have been waiting for you to appear since we arrived here. I knew you'd come. I have many questions for you, Evanna Potter."

"Pray tell," Evanna said.

"Well," said Tom, smiling pleasantly, "how is it that you — a skinny girl with no extraordinary magical talent — though I must add you are incredibly intelligent."

"Thank you," Evanna said, with a small smile. She looked over to George, who was staring at her as if he had never seen her before.

Tom nodded and continued. "How could you manage to defeat the greatest wizard of all time? As a baby no less? How did you escape with nothing but a scar, while Lord Voldemort's powers were destroyed?"

"You used his name," Evanna pointed out softly. "Most are fearful of the name. But you . . . What connection do you have with him?"

"Eva, Voldemort was after his time," George said, seeing a flaw in her logic.

"Voldemort," said Tom softly, "is my past, present, and future . . ."

And Evanna said something that George never thought he'd hear in this conversation (or ever).

"You _are_ Voldemort."

Tom smiled and waved George's wand through the air, making the shimmering words, " _Tom Marvolo Riddle_ " appear floating in the air. George watched in horror as the letter rearranged themselves to spell out, " _I am Lord Voldemort_."

"It was a name I was already using at Hogwarts, to my most intimate friends only, of course. You think I was going to use my filthy Muggle father's name forever? I, in whose veins runs the blood of Salazar Slytherin himself, through my mother's side? I, keep the name of a foul, common Muggle, who abandoned me even before I was born, just because he found out his wife was a witch? No — I fashioned myself a new name, a name I knew wizards everywhere would one day fear to speak, when I had become the greatest sorcerer in the world!"

"Perhaps you are the greatest," Evanna began, "but there's one who you're afraid of. Albus Dumbledore." Tom's eyes filled with rage. "I could use his full name if you'd like."

"Dumbledore's been driven out of this castle by the mere _memory_ of me!" Tom shouted angrily and Evanna was glad to see she'd made him mad.

"He's not as gone as you might think," George said, suddenly remembering what Dumbledore had said back in Hagrid's hut. _However, you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it._ George just hoped that it was true.

"George, he _is_ pretty gon — " Evanna started, but she stopped.

Music had started to echo from somewhere, none of them could really tell where from. It was eerie and spine-tingling and unearthly and somehow it made George feel a bit safer, despite his lack of wand. George stood, craning his neck to try and make out where the noise was coming from, and then he saw it. A phoenix was gliding towards them, singing loudly.

" _Fawkes_ ," he and Evanna breathed at the same time.

"He looks beautiful," Evanna whispered. "I mean, I knew that phoenixes were reborn and whatever, but _wow_."

"And what's that he's carrying?" George asked, as the phoenix dropped a raggedy brown thing at their feet, and landed on Evanna's shoulder. She was grinned and petting the bird gently before it began to fly just above them.

"The old Sorting Hat," Tom said, with a insanely happy look and then a terrible laugh. George could see why. They were at a slight disadvantage. " _This_ is what Dumbledore sends his defenders! A songbird and an old hat! Do you feel _brave_ , Evanna Potter? And _you_ , George Weasley? Do you feel _safe_ now?"

"Unfortunately, not really," Evanna said. "But I do still have my wand."

"No matter," Tom said, waving his hand dismissively. "To business, Evanna. Twice — in your past, in my future — we have met. And twice I failed to kill you. How did you survive? Tell me everything. The longer you talk," he added softly, "the longer you stay alive."

"But the less time Ginny has," Evanna pointed out. "You just want to keep me talking long enough for her to die and you to be fully alive."

Tom growled. "You are too smart to live. But I'll give you one more chance. Just tell me, how are you standing before me today?"

Evanna looked over at George. His eyes were pleading for her not to talk. He wanted his sister to live and Evanna wasn't about to let Ginny die either.

"It's plain and simple, Tom," Evanna said. "It was love. My mother died to save me. My mother's love protected me from you and now I am going to kill you again. That'll make it three times, won't it? Maybe you should give up now."

There was a short pause in which Tom's face contorted into an awful smile.

"So. Your mother died to save you. Yes, that's a powerful countercharm. I can see now . . . there is nothing special about you, after all. I wondered, you see. There are strange likenesses between us, after all. Even you must have noticed. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles. Probably the only two Parselmouths to come to Hogwarts since the great Slytherin himself. But after all, it was merely a lucky chance that saved you from me. That's all I wanted to know.

"Now, Evanna, I'm going to teach you a little lesson. Let's match the powers of Lord Voldemort, Heir of Salazar Slytherin, against famous Evanna Potter, with her scared friend, George Weasley, and the best weapons Dumbledore can give them . . ."

He cast an amused eye over Fawkes and the Sorting Hat, then walked away. Evanna, trying to stay brave but she could feel herself shaking, watched Tom stop between the high pillars and look up into the stone face of Slytherin, high above him in the half-darkness. Tom opened his mouth wide and hissed — but Evanna understood what he was saying . . .

" _Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four._ "

Slytherin's gigantic stone face was moving. Horrorstruck, Evanna saw his mouth opening, wider and wider, to make a huge black hole. And something was stirring inside the statue's mouth. Something was slithering up from its depths.

"I'm not the only one seeing this, right?" she whispered hoarsely.

"Nope," George replied, beginning to slowly back away. " _Run_."

They took off running in the opposite direction, trying to ignore Tom's laughter and the sound of a large snake beginning to uncoil itself on the floor.

" _Kill them_ ," Tom hissed at the snake, and they could now hear the thing slithering across the floor, getting closer and closer —

"We won't be able to outrun it!" George yelled with horror in his voice.

"We have to try!" Evanna yelled in return. "Just whatever you do, _don't look back!_ "

And then there was a horrible roar from behind them, followed by more sounds that they didn't know what were causing them. They desperately wanted to know what was happening, but they also didn't want to risk being killed by the serpent's glare, so they kept running. Only when Evanna tripped did they stop.

Evanna could taste blood in her mouth; whether it was her nose or her mouth that was bleeding, she didn't know. All she knew was that she had just stupidly flipped over to stand up, and she was now facing the poisonous green serpent, but it was surprisingly not chasing them any longer.

It was snapping at Fawkes, who was distracting it by flying around its face. Evanna grinned; Dumbledore had been right, phoenixes were highly faithful. She watched in awe (and fear, ready to snap her eyes closed at any second) as the phoenix swept down and began to attack the snake.

"George," she breathed, "he's attacking its _eyes_. So we won't be death-glared!"

"Wow," was all George could muster.

Tom was not as impressed.

" _NO!_ " Tom screamed as blood poured from the Basilisk's eyes. " _LEAVE THE BIRD! LEAVE THE BIRD! THEY ARE BEHIND YOU! YOU CAN STILL SMELL THEM! KILL THEM!_ "

The snake's tail whipped across the floor wildly, making contact with the previously distracted George and Evanna. They were flung across to the wall, hitting it hard. Evanna, rubbing her head in pain, noticed that the Basilisk had along flung the Sorting Hat across the room. She also noticed the George had slumped over, obviously unconscious. Or dead. But she checked his pulse and it was there.

This still left the problem of a giant, blind snake in front of her, thrashing wildly, definitely able to kill.

Shaking her head from the idiocy of this plan, she rammed the Sorting Hat onto her head. _Please, please help me . . ._ she mentally begged, but when there was no response, she was about to take the hat off.

Until something heavy fell onto her head.

It must've come from within the hat, but how would she not have noticed a full on silver sword, encrusted with rubies? _Magic, duh,_ she corrected herself, and tell brandished the sword with a grin. This was so cool.

" _KILL THE GIRL AT LEAST! LEAVE THE BIRD! THE GIRL IS BEHIND YOU! SNIFF — SMELL HER!_ "

_Tom is obviously getting impatient,_ Evanna thought as she dodged the huge serpent, allowing it to plummet into the wall behind her. _I suppose I should finish this._

This time when the Basilisk lunged towards her, she stood her ground and plunged the sword through the roof of its mouth as it tried to kill her. But she felt pain searing through her right arm as one of the poisonous fangs punctured her skin.

The Basilisk fell on its side with a thud that echoed throughout the chamber, obviously dead, and Evanna fell to her knees, ripping the fang from her arm, but it must've been too late, the poison must've already been running through her veins, she must already be dying. In fact, the whole room was beginning to go hazy, she could barely see it when Fawkes landed beside her.

"Thank you, Fawkes," Evanna whispered to the bird, which had put it's head by where her wound was.

"You're dead, Evanna Potter," said Tom's voice above her. "Dead. Even Dumbledore's bird knows it. Do you see what he's doing, Potter? He's crying."

"No, actually, I can't see very well at all right now," Evanna coughed out. She _definitely_ hung around the twins too much if those were going to be her last words.

"I'm going to sit here and watch you die, Evanna Potter. Take your time. I'm in no hurry."

Evanna was beginning to feel tired. But Tom had neglected the fact that George and Fred were not dead. They could kill him once she was gone,especially if he became solid.

"So ends the famous Evanna Potter," said Tom's distant, but slowly getting nearer, voice. "Alone in the Chamber of Secrets, with no conscious friends around, defeated at last by the Dark Lord he so unwisely challenged. You'll be back with your dear Mudblood mother soon, Evanna . . . She bought you twelve years of borrowed time . . . but Lord Voldemort got you in the end, as you knew he must . . ."

"Could you shut up?! I'm dying here!" Evanna snapped, but she wasn't feeling dead at all. In fact, the room was returning to focus and she could clearly see the appalled look on Tom's face. Was he really that shocked by her snapping at him? But no, he seemed to be looking at Fawkes, who still was crying over Evanna's wound . . . Wait, where did the punctured skin go?

"Get away, bird," Tom growled. "Get away from her — I said, get away — " He aimed George's wand at the bird and there was a loud bang. Fawkes flew away quickly.

Evanna was grinning now. "Phoenix tears have healing properties."

Tom's face was filled with rage, but it suddenly shifted to a somewhat happy expression, still filled with insanity. "But it makes no difference. In fact, I prefer it this way. Just you and me, Evanna Potter . . . you and me . . ."

But as he raised George's wand, Fawkes had returned with something in his talons. He dropped it on Evanna's lap and she gasped; it was Tom Riddle's diary. She suddenly knew exactly what to do, exactly how to kill Tom Riddle. She grabbed the Basilisk fang from the ground beside her and stabbed the book right in the middle.

There was a long, dreadful, piercing scream. Ink spurted out of the diary in torrents, streaming over Evanna's hands, flooding the floor. Tom was writhing and twisting, screaming and flailing and then —

He had gone. George's wand fell to the floor with a clatter and there was silence. Silence except for the steady drip drip of ink still oozing from the diary. The basilisk venom had burned a sizzling hole right through it.

For a few moments, Evanna just stared. She couldn't believe it. She would say that it seemed unreal, but she was slightly used to this sort of thing by now.

She jumped to her feet, with a sudden need to let off some energy. She began to cheer, but soon stopped because it didn't feel right to be celebrating alone, so she ran over to where George lay and tried to wake him.

"Evanna!"

Fred was running up. He had just gotten through the rocks and, observing the scene, seemed to have missed all of the action.

"Fred!" Evanna ran up and hugged him. "We won! We won! Help me wake up your twin, would you? He needs to hear the good news!"

George woke after a few minutes of shaking, and soon the three were celebrating together. Until they heard a small groan and simultaneously remembered something.

" _Ginny!_ "

Ginny woke to Evanna, Fred and George around her. She stared around in horror, taking in the scene before. Evanna was covered in blood and ink and she was holding Tom's diary in her hands, while George and Fred were both much less dirty, but still with a few cuts and bruises. And then there was the Basilisk, obviously dead with a bunch of blood around it. Tears welled up in Ginny's eyes, she needed to tell them everything!

"Fred, George — oh, Evanna," Ginny sobbed. "I tried to tell you at b-breakfast, but I _c-couldn't_ say it, I was too scared — it was _me_ , Evanna — but I — I s-swear I d-didn't mean to — T-Tom made me, he t-took me over — and — _how_ did you kill that — that thing? W-where's Tom? The last thing I r-remember is him coming out of the diary — "

Ginny couldn't finish because the other three redheads crushed her in a hug. This only made Ginny cry harder.

"Oh, Ginny! We're so glad you're alright!" Fred said.

"We thought you were dead!" George added.

"You're okay now, it's okay. Tom is dead, so is the Basilisk . . . Don't cry, Ginny, you're going to make me cry!" Evanna cried, grinning at the girl.

"I'm going to be expelled!" Ginny sniffed, as Evanna helped her up to her feet. "I've looked forward to coming to Hogwarts ever since B-Bill came and n-now I'll have to leave and — _w-what'll Mum and Dad say?_ "

"Gin, calm down!" Fred demanded. "You won't be expelled! You did nothing wrong!"

" _Nothing wrong?!_ " Ginny shrieked. "I opened the freaking Chamber of Secrets!"

"No, you didn't," Evanna said. "Tom did, remember? You had no clue what you were doing. It's like when someone sleepwalks. You can't blame them for being out of bed at midnight, they had no control of what they were doing."

The analogy made Ginny think of her friend, Luna, making her feel a little bit better.

"I think that now we can finally get out of here," George said, smiling from ear to ear. "I don't think there'll be any more attacks anytime soon."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As soon as they entered Professor McGonagall's office, they were met with stares from Professor McGonagall, Professor Dumbledore, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Not that Evanna had expected any less, they did look rather odd. All of them were covered in dirt (plus blood and ink in Evanna's case), with Lockhart looking around in wonder as if he had never seen anything before in his life, and Evanna was carrying the Sword of Gryffindor and Tom Riddle's Diary. Plus, Fawkes had just flown in with the Sorting Hat.

" _Ginny_!"

Mrs. Weasley seemed to have suddenly realized what was actually before her and she and Mr. Weasley rushed up, capturing their daughter in a suffocating hug, then Fred and George, and then finally Evanna.

"You saved her! How?" Mrs. Weasley asked, looking at the dirty group.

"I think we'd all like to know that," said Professor McGonagall weakly.

"It's a long and scary story," Evanna began, "but it all started back in the beginning of the year . . ."

Evanna explained what had happened, starting with the attacks and ending with when they had found the entrance to the Chamber, with the Weasley twins adding comments here and there.

"Very well," Professor McGonagall prompted her as she paused, "so you found out where the entrance was — breaking a hundred school rules into pieces along the way, I might add — but how on _earth_ did you all get out of there alive, Potter?"

Evanna's voice was beginning to get hoarse, so George continued, telling them about how Fawkes had arrived with the Sorting Hat. But then he stopped. So far, they hadn't mentioned anything about the diary, and he knew Evanna had nothing against talking about it, but he really didn't want his sister getting expelled.

Evanna rolled her eyes, knowing why he had stopped. "Oh honestly, she's not going to be expelled for being enchanted by Lord Voldemort!"

"W-what's that?" said Mr. Weasley in a stunned voice. "You-Know-Who? En-enchant Ginny? But Ginny's not . . . Ginny hasn't been . . . has she?"

"It was this," Evanna said, holding up the diary. "When Tom Riddle was sixteen, he preserved a memory of himself within the pages of this book. Tom Riddle is Voldemort's real name," Evanna added, to the confused Weasley parents. "Ginny has been writing in it, and it has been writing back, and sucking the life out of her little by little. It must've been a horrible experience," Evanna said sympathetically to the ginger girl. "I hope you don't get PTSD."

" _Ginny_!" said Mr. Weasley, flabbergasted and much less sympathetic than Evanna, shocking her more than anything. "Haven't I taught you anything? What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself _if you can't see where it keeps its brain_. Why didn't you show the diary to me, or your mother? A suspicious object like that, it was _clearly_ full of Dark Magic — "

Ginny had started sobbing again and Evanna instinctively put an arm around her.

"Um, excuse me, Mr. Weasley?" Evanna asked. "I don't think you should actually be lecturing her right now. I mean, not to insult your parenting, but she's just been through probably the most traumatic thing than anyone else in this room, so I think what she needs is comfort. Besides the fact that she is eleven, she had no friends at first, and Tom Riddle is a rather convincing man. I'd be surprised if very many people would suspect him of anything, and Ginny eventually _did_ , she's rather intelligent and perceptive. I guess that what I'm saying is, I know what it's like to be lectured after going through bad experiences and it's not a very nice feeling." After Evanna had finished, she tacked a quick "Sorry" onto the end, knowing that it wasn't really her place to say what to say and what not to say to Ginny, though Ginny looked incredibly grateful.

"Miss Weasley should go up to the hospital wing right away," Dumbledore said in a firm voice. "Evanna is correct, this has been a terrible ordeal for her. There will be no punishment. Older and wiser wizards than she have been hoodwinked by Lord Voldemort." He strode over to the door and opened it. "Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up," he added, twinkling kindly down at her. "You will find that Madam Pomfrey is still awake. She's just giving out Mandrake juice — I daresay the basilisk's victims will be waking up any moment."

"So Hermione and Ron will be alright?" Evanna asked with relief.

"Yes," Dumbledore said with a kind smile, as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley lead Ginny out, Mr. Weasley looking at Evanna oddly, but not in an angry way. She had been right and he knew it. She was a very smart girl.

"You know, Minerva," Professor Dumbledore said thoughtfully to Professor McGonagall, "I think all this merits a good feast. Might I ask you to go and alert the kitchens?"

"Right," said Professor McGonagall crisply, also moving to the door. "I'll leave you to deal with Potter and Weasleys, shall I?"

"Certainly," said Dumbledore.

Evanna looked at Dumbledore with interest. He definitely wasn't going to expel them; they had saved everybody's lives, hadn't they?

"I seem to remember telling you both that I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules," said Dumbledore, looking over at Evanna.

She bobbed her head in agreement, as the twins stared open-mouthed at Dumbledore.

"Which goes to show that the best of us must sometimes eat our words," Dumbledore went on, smiling. "You three will each receive Special Awards for Services to the School and — let me see — yes, I think two hundred points apiece for Gryffindor.

"But one of us seems to be keeping mightily quiet about his part in this dangerous adventure," Dumbledore added. "Why so modest, Gilderoy?"

"Oh, right!" Evanna gasped. She had completely forgotten about Lockhart.

"Professor Dumbledore," George said quickly, "there was an accident down in the Chamber of Secrets. Professor Lockhart — "

"Am I a professor?" said Lockhart in mild surprise. "Goodness. I expect I was hopeless, was I?"

"He tried to do a Memory Charm and the wand backfired," Fred explained quietly to Dumbledore.

"Dear me," said Dumbledore, shaking his head, his long silver mustache quivering. "Impaled upon your own sword, Gilderoy!"

"Sword?" said Lockhart dimly. "Haven't got a sword. That girl has, though." He pointed at Evanna. "She'll lend you one."

"Would you mind taking Professor Lockhart up to the infirmary, too?" Dumbledore said to Fred and George. "I'd like a few more words with Evanna . . ."

The twins left, Lockhart in tow, with one last glance back at Evanna. She smiled and then sat down to talk with Dumbledore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: WOO YES THAT WAS A FUN CHAPTER FOR SOME REASON! Idk, I had fun writing it and it's one am and I'm hyper so yeah :P
> 
> Please review and vote on my poll! ~Jayce


	36. Ending the Year on a High Note

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 36: Ending the Year on a High Note
> 
> A/N: YAY THE LAST CHAPTER IN BOOK TWO! It's a shorter one, but the next should be longer. I was just trying to finish up CoS you know.
> 
> Anyways, thank you all so much for reading, I love you!

When Evanna finally arrived at the feast, Fred and George bombarded her with questions about what Dumbledore had talked to her about. She told them all about the Sword of Gryffindor, and how that meant she was a true Gryffindor, and how Voldemort, or Tom Riddle as she had started to insist on calling him, had put a bit of his soul into her when she killed him as a baby, and how she had helped free Dobby the house-elf. They were awestruck when she had finished.

But then they were distracted by the doors of the Great Hall opening and all of those who had been petrified running into the room. Ron and Hermione made a beeline towards Evanna, hugging her so tightly that the twins thought she made break. She hugged them back, and they could hear her sniffing back tears.

"You did it, you figured it out," Ron whispered. "I mean, I didn't have any doubt you would but, _you did it_!"

"How did you kill the Basilisk though?" Hermione asked in awe.

And so, Evanna retold the story of how she and the twins had gone into the forest and learned that the girl was killed in a bathroom, and how Ginny had helped her deduce that Moaning Myrtle was the one who had been killed, and how they made it into the Chamber of Secrets, and how Lockhart had lost his memory ("Oh no!" Hermione cried, then went red when they all gave her a look), and how it had been Tom Riddle controlling Ginny all along, and how Fawkes had arrived with the Sorting Hat, and how she had been able to pull the Sword of Gryffindor from its depths, and how she had killed both the Basilisk and the diary. By the end of her story, everyone who had been listening were staring at her wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

Justin Finch-Fletchley, who had been listening to her adventure as well, began to apologize profusely for ever believing that she was the Heir. She grinned, forgiving him immediately, and saying how suspicious she had been at any rate, and how she was just happy that they could still be friends.

Then, a little while afterwards, Hagrid came back, giving Evanna, Ron, Hermione and the twins a large hug, thanking them for getting him out of Azkaban, McGonagall canceled the exams, much to Hermione's dismay, and Dumbledore announced that Lockhart wouldn't be able to return the next year, due to the priority of getting his memory back, earning applause from a large portion of the school.

As she grinned and chatted with her friends, Evanna thought that overall this had been a pretty good outcome for the year that Tom Riddle had almost returned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ginny sat with her best friends, Neville, Tracey, and Luna, under a tree by the lake. It had been a while since the whole 'Chamber of Secrets' incident. She was happy that they still were her friends, even after everything she had done. They said the same sort of thing that Evanna had, that it hadn't really been her fault and that they still loved her just the same.

"You should've given me the diary," Tracey was saying. "I would've been able to kill it for you."

"How?" Neville asked nervously.

"I have connections," was all Tracey said in reply, only making Neville more nervous. He needn't have been, Tracey would never harm him or Luna or Ginny or anyone who wasn't a villain.

Ginny grinned. She was considerably more happy than she had been the rest of the year (and yet, at the same time, more nervous). "I think it's kind of good that I did what I did though, or else Evanna might never have solved the mystery."

"I think she might've," Luna disagreed. "She seems really smart."

"Eh, you're probably right," Ginny said. "But it's too late now. Tom is finally dead, and so's the Basilisk. If I'm honest," she lowered her voice, leaning towards her friends, "I wasn't as scared of the Basilisk as I was of Tom Riddle."

"I'd be more scared of him too," Neville said, shivering with memories. None of the girls pressed on what he was thinking of, making him extremely grateful.

"Me too," Tracey agreed, and Luna bobbed her head along as well. Ginny was glad for the support, and smiled softly.

"Ginny, have you been having any symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?" Luna asked, hoping that she hadn't. "Or any problems at all? It was a rather traumatic experience, I'm sure."

Her smile was gone in an instant and Ginny shifted uncomfortably. She didn't want anybody worrying over her, especially her friends, but if she was going to tell anybody, it would be them. "Yes. I have nightmares, and insomnia too. But Madam Pomfrey said that sometimes symptoms of PTSD don't show until months afterwards, so." Ginny shrugged, trying to act nonchalant, but she was actually really nervous.

"Oh, Ginny," Tracey said sympathetically, "we'll help you through this."

Ginny smiled softly. "Thanks guys." She stood up and stretched. "I think I'm going to go back inside the castle, I'm really hungry. I'll be right back, okay?"

Ginny skipped up towards the castle. She actually was hungry, but she really just wanted to be alone for a few minutes. She didn't want to topic of her trauma to continue. Unfortunately, her plans of getting to the castle uninterrupted were foiled when someone bumped into her, falling over.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Ginny cried, immediately grabbing both his hands and helping the boy to his feet. Then she realized who he was.

She and Draco Malfoy stared at each other for a good minute before recoiling.

Draco didn't say anything mean, just looked at her as if he had never seen her before. Despite the fact that he was usually a horrible person, Ginny still picked up Draco's books from the ground and handed them it him. He took them gratefully.

"Er, thanks, Weasley," Draco said, in surprise and without malice.

"You're welcome, Malfoy," she said awkwardly, but also without contempt. "Er, I'll just be going then."

"Yeah, uh, bye," Draco agreed, and they each went their separate ways. But unbeknownst to the other, they snuck looks back at the other's retreating figure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The year had ended too quickly, Evanna decided, as she sat down next to Ginny and Ron in their compartment in the Hogwarts Express, with Fred, Hermione and George across from them. After the whole 'Chamber of Secrets' incident, the rest of the year had been really fun and relaxing. Evanna was sad to see it end and have to go back to the Dursleys.

But they were making the most of their train ride back. They played a few dozen games of Exploding Snap, set off the last of Fred and George's Filibuster Fireworks, and practiced disarming each other. Evanna had become the best of all of them.

"Oh yeah, did you hear who Percy's girlfriend was?" Evanna asked with a grin.

"I walked in on them kissing in an empty classroom earlier this year," Ginny giggled. "They're rather cute."

" _What_?!" Fred and George gasped in unison, their heads whipping towards the girls. Then George elbowed his twin, who had dropped a stack of books on his head from where he had been putting them away on the overhead compartment. Fred grinned sheepishly as George passed the books back up to him.

"Percy has a _girlfriend_?" Ron asked dubiously. Though it was hard to be too dubious when he was trying not to laugh at the twins.

"Penelope Clearwater, a Ravenclaw prefect," Ginny explained. "She was petrified with you guys."

"That's why Percy was so distraught about her being petrified, _not_ because she was a prefect, but because they were _dating_ ," Evanna added. "That's how I figured it out, in fact." Evanna looked sternly at the twins, who had mischievous smirks on their faces. "You won't tease him, will you?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," said Fred, who was looking like his birthday had come early. Hermione hit him with an equally stern glare.

"Definitely not," said George, sniggering at his twin who was now looking at the bookworm with a mix between shock, anger and something else.

"Keep those two in line," Evanna said, nudging Ginny and Ron.

"Of course," Ginny grinned, as Ron gave a salute and Fred and George gave a ' _Hey_!' of protest. Hermione giggled.

"Oh yeah, one more thing," Evanna said, as the train began to slow down. She pulled out her sketchbook and ripped out a piece of paper. She wrote the Dursleys' phone number down four times and ripped it to give each person a piece (except the twin, who shared everything anyways). "This is called a phone number. You can call me on the telephone."

"Oh, Katie taught us how to use one of those," Fred said.

"We'll probably still owl you though," George said. "Telephones are weird."

"They aren't _that_ weird," Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "Oh, but Evanna, I think my parents were planning for us to go to France this summer, so I'm not sure how often I'll be able to call . . ."

"That's fine, have fun if you do go," Evanna grinned as they all got off together.

"Will your family be proud that you saved the school?" Ginny asked.

"Nope," Evanna laughed. Then she pulled Fred, George and Ron to the side while Ginny and Hermione exchanged Hermione's phone number. "Look, I think that Ginny's going to have some troubles readjusting to life after everything that happened this year and, no offense to your parents, but I don't think they'll be much help to her. You guys need to be the ones who help her."

"Of course," Ron agreed, while the twins nodded their heads vigorously. "See you, Evanna."

"Yeah, we'll see you this summer hopefully!" Fred added.

Evanna grinned widely. "You guys are the best friends anyone could ever have!"

She hugged each person tightly, almost squishing poor Ginny, who had never been hugged so tightly before except maybe by her mother, and then, grasping the hands of Ron and Hermione, headed through the barrier to the Muggle world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Only a week after school had let out for the summer, Ron excitedly dialed Evanna's number into the telephone that his dad had got. He had to tell her the good news! But he paused midway through dialing. How would they be able to hear him all the way in Surrey? Perhaps he needed to shout, yes that seemed right.

"Vernon Dursley speaking."

Ah yes, that was Evanna's uncle!

"HELLO? HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

"Ron!" Ginny, who had been walking by, snatched the telephone from him. "That's not how you use a phone!" She began to speak into the phone. "Mr. Dursley? I'm sorry about my brother. He isn't the brightest. I'd like to speak to your niece please."

"What is this? Why do you want her?"

"We need to discuss her _recent behavior_ ," Ginny said confidently, making sure it sounded like Evanna was in trouble. She could almost hear the man smirk as he yelled for Evanna to come answer the phone.

"Hello?" Evanna asked nervously.

"Evanna!" Both Ginny and Ron were speaking into the phone now, holding it awkwardly between them.

"Ron! Ginny!" Evanna grinned. "It's so great to hear your voices!"

"Evanna, guess what?" Ron asked, remembering why he had originally called. "Dad won the Grand Prize Galleon Draw! We've got _seven hundred galleons_! We're going to all go visit Bill in Egypt over the summer. I just thought I should let you know before we go out of contact for a while."

"Ron, that's awesome!" Evanna cried. "And how have you been, Ginny?"

"Good."

Ginny scowled when Ron nudged her.

" _Okay, okay_ , I _might_ still have some nightmares. And insomnia. But that's all! I'm fine, _really_!"

"Ron, you and the twins are helping her?"

"Yeah."

Ginny huffed, crossing her arms angrily. She hated it when people talked about her as if she wasn't even there! Besides, she was honestly doing fine! She didn't want anyone worrying over her more than they needed to.

"Okay, good. Er, I think that my uncle's clued in to the fact that you guys aren't scolding me or anything, I should go. Owl me from Egypt?"

"Of course!"

"Okay, tell the twins I say hi!"

"Bye Evanna!"

Once they had hung up, Ron looked quizzically over at his younger sister. "How'd you know how to use the phone?"

"Tracey taught me," Ginny said. "She's a half-blood; her mother is Muggle-born, so she knows about a bunch of Muggle stuff, along with Wizarding stuff."

Ron opened his mouth to reply, but then the twins had come out of nowhere and cried, "You were talking to Evanna without us?!"

"Yeah, so?" Ron asked.

"We wanted to talk to her too!" Fred said.

"Well you shouldn't call her again, at least not today. I think her uncle got mad at her," Ginny said, taking the phone out of George's hand. "Besides, we're going to Egypt soon, you could just Owl her."

"Or if you're so intent on talking to her, send her a Howler."

Ron just grinned at the two identical glares sent his way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The week after, Evanna had another phone call addressed to her. Luckily, this time, the Dursleys were out of the house, so she was the one who answered. "Hello?"

"Evanna!"

"Hermione! It is so great to hear your voice!"

"It's so amazing to hear you too! Oh, did Ron tell you?"

"That the Weasleys are going to Egypt? Yeah, he and Ginny called me last week."

"Well, I'm going to be in France for the same amount of time! I'm sorry, since I don't have an owl, it'll be harder for me to keep in touch . . ."

"Oh, don't worry about it, Mione! I just hope you have fun!"

"Oh, Evanna, you're too nice! But thank you. I hope your family treats you well. Or, at least, better than usual."

"I think that's a bit much to ask," Evanna sighed. "Anyways, I hear their car, so I should be going. See you at Hogwarts!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: WOO BOOK TWO IS OVER! READY TO START BOOK THREE! PoA and OotP were my favourite books, idk why, so I'm really excited :D
> 
> Please review and vote on the poll if you want to! ~Jayce


	37. Vacationing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 37: Vacationing
> 
> A/N: WOO HOO FIRST CHAPTER OF BOOK THREE! I'm super excited! This chapter was mostly them on vacay and stuff, but the next will be Aunt Marge's Big Mistake (dun dun duuuuuun!)
> 
> (To make sure no one gets confused: when there's a sentence/paragraph, with _some words in italics_ and then after some (** _words in brackets with asterisks like this_ ) then that is the translation of the French to English (in brackets) Sorry about translation; I got some of it from Google Translate, and some of it is definitely Canadian French)
> 
> Umm, thanks for reading~!

Evanna Potter smiled widely when she saw Hedwig returning towards her window. She had sworn to her uncle that she wouldn't send any letters to her friends, so that she would be able to let Hedwig out of her cage, but after knowing the Weasleys for around two years now, do you expect her to actually keep her word? She would definitely have kept her word if it had been anyone else, but Uncle Vernon was a different story.

Hedwig had brought back four letters today; three from Egypt (why Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny didn't just make one big letter, she would never understand) and one from France. Evanna gave Hedwig an extra treat and began to read the letters in the light of the full moon, starting with Ron's.

_Hey Evanna!_ (Evanna had always enjoyed reading the Weasleys letters, as they each used a different coloured ink. Today Ron's was maroon.)

_I'm doing great; Egypt is fantastic! Bill showed us around and there are a ton of cool pyramids and tombs and stuff! We got to see a bunch that Muggles can't, you know, the wizarding ones. They all have a bunch of curses that make Muggles grow extra heads and whatever. Fred and George tried to lock Percy in one today; I expect they'll tell you more about it in their letter._

_I hope that one day you could meet Bill and Charlie. I think you'd like them. Charlie would be able to give you Quidditch tips, even more than the twins because he was a Seeker too. One of the best there was, in fact! But I think you knew that? Oh, and Bill is the best, he knows all the coolest facts and stuff, and he's a curse breaker, which is probably the coolest job, after an auror, of course._

_Oh yeah, I'll definitely send you something for you birthday, it's coming up soon isn't it! I hope the Muggles are treating you well._

_Don't let the Muggles get you down,_

_Ron_

Evanna grinned happily, moving on the Fred and George's letter. It had two different colours of ink, magenta for Fred and blue for George. Evanna liked how their handwriting was different, but so similar that it was almost impossible to tell without the ink changes.

_Vanna **/Eva**_

_**We're glad that our lock picking teachings have been put to good use; of course stealing your sketchbook back is a worthy cause! You without your sketchbook is like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without peanut butter!** _

_Or a pickle and cheese sandwich without the pickles! Also, we're very proud of you. Breaking the rules is always fun! Guess what? We tried to lock Percy in a pyramid today. It was one with a ton of curses and stuff._

_**But Mum caught us, which was too bad. We were hoping he would come out with extra appendages!** (Good word, Forge.) **(Thank you, Gred.)**_

_Anyways, we're really excited to see you at Hogwarts this year. I think George might have a surprise for you **FRED SHUT UP!** Okay, fine, whatever._

_Love from, Fred **and George Weasley**_

Evanna chuckled. Those two were impossible. She was happy to see that Ginny had written a letter too, in green ink.

_Dear Evanna,_

_I'm doing alright. I'll be honest with you, a few more PTSD symptoms have shown up. Now, not only do I have nightmares and insomnia, but I also had my first flashback a couple days ago. I could've sworn it was real, it was so scary._

_But I'm fine now. (I do have a fear of writing in black ink, thinking he's going to respond, is that bad?) I just hope I don't have another one._

_Oh, and thanks for asking my brothers to help me through this, they're really great. Fred and George can help me go back to sleep after nightmares really well and Ron is really helpful with my insomnia. George was super helpful during my flashback too._

_From, Ginny_

Evanna frowned slightly. "Oh, I hope Ginny will be alright," she sighed, before turning to the final letter in her hands.

_Bonjour Evanna!_ (**Hello Evanna!)

_Ça va bien, merci!_ (**I'm doing fine, thank you!) _(I'm learning French; I know, you're probably rolling your eyes right now like, "Hermione, always after education." Well, all I have to say to that is: tais-toi!)_ (**shut up!)

_I'm learning loads of things besides the language too, the history is fascinating! I believe that there's another wizarding school around somewhere too, I've noticed a few people with wands concealed in their pockets or sleeves._

_Today we're going to visit the Eiffel Tower. I'll send you photographs in my next letter (not moving ones unfortunately). I hope you're doing well!_

_Avec amour,_ (**With love,)

_Hermione_

Evanna grinned widely, immediately working on her many responses.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hedwig's back!" Ron called over to his siblings. It was very nice of Evanna to let them use Hedwig to send their replies, as Errol might faint over the water and that would be very bad.

Fred, George and Ginny ran up to each get their respective letters, as Percy, Charlie and Bill looked on in amusement.

"It's nice that Evanna is friends with them," Percy admitted. "She's an amazingly kind girl. It's hard to see a bad side in her. I think it does them good to have a friend like that."

"I'd like to meet her sometime, especially after hearing all of these stories," Bill said. "Facing You-Know-Who twice within the last two years alone, she must be a magnet for trouble."

"Look at George," Charlie murmured, nudging his brothers.

George's face was soft, with a large smile gracing his lips as he read the letter Evanna had sent. He looked like he was the most contented person in the world. In other words, he looked like he was in love.

"If he isn't head over heels for this girl, he's doing a good job of faking it," Bill grinned. He turned to Charlie. "Bet you five sickles that he asks her out before the end of the year."

Charlie laughed. "You're on!"

Percy frowned. "I don't think that betting on them is the best idea . . ."

"Of course, it is," Bill said dismissively. "But that's why I didn't ask you to bet too, Perce!"

Percy folded his arms with a humph. He didn't think either Evanna or George would be very happy if they found out about this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione pushed through the crowded streets of Paris, tears in her eyes. She had lost her parents! When they were coming down the Eiffel Tower, they had been behind her and she had kept going and now she didn't know where they were!

She was trying not to cry as she headed for a slightly less crowded fountain, sitting on the edge. If she could use magic, she'd be able to find them for sure! But right now, her best bet was to get help from one of the locals to find her hotel again.

" _Excusez-moi, parlez-vous anglais?_ " she asked the girl beside her tearfully. (** _Excuse me, do you speak English?_ )

The girl turned to face her, revealing one of the most beautiful girls that Hermione had ever seen. " _Oui_. Oh! Are you alright?" (** _Yes_.)

"I'm lost and can't find my parents, would you be able to help me find my hotel?" Hermione asked pleadingly.

"But of course," the girl said kindly. " _Je m'appelle Fleur, Fleur Delacour. Et toi?_ " (** _My name is Fleur, Fleur Delacour. And you?_ )

" _Je m'appelle Hermione Granger_ ," Hermione told her, and then told her the name of the hotel she had been staying at. (** _My name is Hermione Granger_.)

After nearly thirty minute of walking through crowds, with Fleur gripping Hermione's hand tightly so that she wouldn't get lost yet again, they made it to Hermione's hotel. Hermione knew that this was where her parents would look for her first, so this is where she had to be.

" _Merci beaucoup, Fleur!_ " Hermione cried. (** _Thank you so much, Fleur!_ )

"Anytime, 'Ermione," Fleur smiled kindly. "I 'ope you find your parents alright."

"Thank you! _Au revoir!_ " Hermione waved as she entered the hotel, and she couldn't help but hope that she would see Fleur again sometime. (** _Goodbye!_ )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna happily received several letters when she was an hour into being thirteen years old. Three owls, five packages, and one Hogwarts letter. Evanna allowed Errol into Hedwig's cage and took the first parcel from him.

It contained the news clipping of the Weasleys in Egypt, a nice letter from Ron, and a Pocket Sneakoscope, which Ron explained was a device that would light up and spin when somebody untrustworthy was around. Evanna grinned widely as she moved onto the next package.

The twins had given her a letter, which included her name in hieroglyphics, and some beautiful jewelry, a necklace from George and a bracelet from Fred. Ginny had also written Evanna a letter and given her a present, a few cute t-shirts that Evanna loved.

Hermione had written Evanna a rather lengthy letter, wishing her happy birthday and also describing how she had met a kind French girl named Fleur Delacour, plus she had also gotten Evanna a _Broomstick Servicing Kit_ , via owl order.

Each of them had mentioned how Percy had been made Head Boy at least once. Evanna could only imagine how ecstatic the eldest Weasley, the eldest who was still attending Hogwarts at least, was to find out.

The final parcel was from Hagrid. It had to be from him, considering how it snapped and fidgeted as if it were alive and angry. Hagrid would never, of course, give Evanna anything dangerous on purpose, but considering his previous track record . . .

Evanna glanced around from something she could use as a weapon, other than her wand (underage magic could get her expelled of course, as proven by Dobby last year), finally settling on her lamp. She raised it, ready to strike should she need to, and ripped open the parcel.

A book dropped out and for a moment, Evanna lowered her weapon in confusion. But the lamp was back up in a second once she had glimpsed the cover: _The Monster Book of Monsters_. Suddenly, it flipped over to its side, scuttling along her bed like some weird crab.

"Ah!" She tried to hit it with her lamp, but only managed to hit it off the bed.

The book scuttled across the room, until finally settling underneath her desk. She sighed with resignation and reached under to get it, only to give a small yelp of pain when the book slammed shut on her hand. The book began to go across the room again, and Evanna pounced on it, flattening it beneath her. She held the book tightly shut in her arms, tying it closed with a belt.

"Ugh," She sighed, falling backwards onto her bed, reading Hagrid's letter, hoping for an explanation of why he gave her a biting-book.

_Dear Evanna,_

_Happy Birthday!_

_Think you might find this useful for next year. Won't say no more here. Tell you when I see you._

_Hope the Muggles are treating you right._

_All the best,_

_Hagrid_

Evanna laughed half-heartedly. "Why on earth would this book be helpful?" she muttered, before grabbing up the final envelope, the letter from Hogwarts. It was a bit thicker than usual, but then Evanna remembered the twins talking about Hogsmeade, so maybe it explained something about that.

_Dear Miss Potter,_

_Please note that the new school year will begin on September the first. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock._

_Third years are permitted to visit the village of Hogsmeade on certain weekends. Please give the enclosed permission form to your parent or guardian to sign._

_A list of books for next year is enclosed._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Professor M. McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

"A permission slip?"

Evanna felt her happy feeling from moments before disappear completely. There was no way she'd ever convince her uncle or aunt to sign this. They loved to torment her, and letting her go out to a _fun_ village with her _friends_ was not something they would want to allow. Maybe she could trick them into signing it. They had tricked Lockhart last year, after all.

"Optimism. Be optimistic, Evanna," she reminded herself, before snuggling into bed (it _was_ two in the morning after all). She would worry about Hogsmeade tomorrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Sirius Black?" Ginny looked over at her brothers in confusion. They were eavesdropping on an important conversation that their parents and older brothers were having. Apparently, someone named Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban. "Who's Sirius Black?"

"Listen and maybe we'll find out," George shushed, putting his ear back to the door. "Ugh, it's so hard to hear anything!"

Fred snapped his fingers, obviously with a new thought. "What if we made something that could help you eavesdrop better?" he asked, looking at his twin happily. "It could be like a new ear that can amplify the sound and — "

"Shh!" Both Ron and Ginny hissed, pressing their ears more firmly to the door.

"Escaping Azkaban is impossible though!" Bill had just exclaimed, and the younger siblings could only imagine the look of incomprehension and disbelief on his face.

"That's what we all believed," Dad said. "But he has somehow escaped. Your mother and I thought that you three should know, to keep an eye out, you know. But we don't want your younger siblings to be scared. So just, don't let them know yet. It'll be in the Prophet soon I would think, but I just don't want this to ruin anyone's vacation. Black is far, far away from Egypt, so nobody should be worrying now. Including you three."

"Dad," Charlie started uncertainly, "does anyone know why Black escaped? I mean, does he have a motive? Pettigrew is dead, and that's obviously who he was chasing the first time — "

"Shh," Percy said suddenly. There was a long pause in which the four outside the door began to realize what was happening. Before they could move, footsteps strode quickly across the room and the door was flung open.

"Hey, Charlie!" Ginny said, with an innocent smile.

He smiled back at her, then slammed the door again. Ron let out a curse when it nearly hit him in the nose.

They waited with bated breath for a few moments, wondering what would happen next. Finally, Fred pressed his ear to the door yet again. "Damn! They put an Imperturbable Charm on the door!"

"Ugh!" George groaned, flopping backwards onto the floor in irritation. "I wonder if Charlie was right about a motive?"

"I hope n — " Ron paused. "Wait, no. I hope he does. Then he probably won't bother us, right?"

"Oh yeah, true," Fred agreed.

None of them bothered adding that maybe his target was one of them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hermione was now on very good terms with Fleur Delacour. They had met again when Hermione's family had went to the Louvre, and Fleur showed them around. She had a massive love of art and nature, and saw the beauty in many things. Hermione felt that she and Evanna would get along well.

Now today, they had actually planned another meeting, by a nice quiet park that Fleur liked. There were a few booths with vendors, who kept asking Hermione if she would like to buy anything, or paint pictures for money, which she had politely declined, sitting down on a bench to wait for Fleur. She was positive this was the right place . . .

"'Ermione!"

Hermione grinned up at her new French friend. "Fleur!"

They embraced happily.

"It is _so_ great to see you," Hermione said truthfully. "With all of my friends from school back in England, I was so glad to meet you and, most importantly, become friends with you!"

Fleur smiled widely. "It was great to become your friend too, 'Ermione. A lot of my friends from school are away on 'oliday or live too far away."

Hermione glanced around. "I can see why you like this park. It's peaceful, despite the vendors."

"It is, isn't it?" Fleur said, also looking around. "My little sister loves it 'ere." She turned back to Hermione. "Now, 'ow is your _français_ coming along?" (** _French_ )

" _Attendez! Tu as une sœur?_ " Hermione asked, a bit surprised at this new information. She had thought Fleur was an only child, since she was never travelling with her family. (** _Wait! You have a sister?_ )

" _Bien fait, votre français est améliorent! Aussi, oui_ ," Fleur replied. (** _Well done, your french is improving! Also, yes._ )

"When can I meet her?" Hermione asked. "I'd love to meet your family, you've met mine!"

Fleur stopped. " _Tu ne peux pas._ " (** _You can't/You can not._ )

"Well, why not?" Hermione insisted. "I won't judge you, I promise. If it's your religion or something — "

"Non, non, it's just . . ." Fleur stammered, wondering how she could tell Hermione that her family lived in a magical community without revealing that they were magic. "Zey are not exactly . . . normal. You would not like zem."

"I'm sure they're wonderful people," Hermione argued. "What's the real reason you don't want me to meet them?"

"I would 'ave to obliviate you if you did!" Fleur hissed fiercely, then seemed to realize what she had said. "No wait, obliviate is ze wrong word, I do not know the Eenglish word for zat — "

Hermione gasped excitedly. "No, Fleur, I know what you mean! I go to Hogwarts!"

"'Ogwarts? Ze British wizarding school?" A smile was growing wider on Fleur's face. "Amazing! So you are a witch zen?"

"Yes! I'm going to be in my third year this September," Hermione said. "But I'm a Muggle-born, which is probably why you didn't realize. A lot of wizards and witches who I know aren't that good in public places."

Fleur laughed. "I know ze feeling! My parents stay very strictly in wizarding communities. I'm trying to teach my sister 'ow to not attract attention in Muggle communities."

"So then you must go to Beauxbatons," Hermione concluded.

"Oui. I am in my sixth year. My sister, she is only seven, so she is not attending school yet," Fleur said.

"Wow, we suddenly have loads more to talk about now," Hermione grinned.

"Now say zat in French!"

Hermione sighed in exasperation as Fleur laughed; maybe getting Fleur to help her learn French was not her best idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I KNEW SINCE BOOK 1 THAT I WANTED HERMIONE AND FLEUR TO BE FRIENDS AND SHE WENT TO FRANCE ON VACATION IN THE THIRD BOOK SO HERE'S SOME SET UP OOOOH!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	38. The Act of Blowing Up Aunts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 38: The Act of Blowing Up Aunts
> 
> A/N: I'M SORRY THIS CHAPTER TOOK SO LONG, I WAS AWAY THE CREATION FEST (EAST) AND IT WAS SO AMAZING ASDFGHJKL (if you were there tell me and we can fangirl/fanboy together! TobyMac is my favourite! Wasn't he great?! ASDFGHJKL)
> 
> I REALLY LIKE THIS ONE OKAY AND THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR AWESOME REVIEWS I LOVE YOU
> 
> Anyways, ENJOY!

Evanna woke up later than she usually might've, considering how late she was up the night before. But as soon as she stepped in the kitchen, the TV caught her eye. The reporter was talking about an escaped convict. She grabbed a piece of toast and began to listen.

". . . the public is warned that Black is armed and extremely dangerous. A special hotline has been set up, and any sighting of Black should be reported immediately."

"No need to tell us he's no good," snorted Uncle Vernon, staring over the top of his newspaper at the prisoner. "Look at the state of him, the filthy layabout! Look at his hair!"

He shot a nasty look sideways at Evanna, whose untidy hair had always been a source of great annoyance to Uncle Vernon. Compared to the man on the television, however, whose gaunt face was surrounded by a matted, elbow-length tangle, Evanna felt as if her hair was like a movie star's.

The reporter had reappeared.

"The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries will announce today — "

"Hang on!" barked Uncle Vernon, staring furiously at the reporter. "You didn't tell us where that maniac's escaped from! What use is that? Lunatic could be coming up the street right now!"

Evanna, though she slightly doubted that, was overcome with a sudden wave of fright. The crazy stuff always happened to her, so a mass murderer appearing at their doorstep wouldn't be exactly farfetched.

"When will they learn," said Uncle Vernon, pounding the table with his large purple fist, "that hanging's the only way to deal with these people?"

"Very true," said Aunt Petunia, who missed Evanna's scoff.

Uncle Vernon drained his teacup, glanced at his watch, and added, "I'd better be off in a minute, Petunia. Marge's train gets in at ten."

Evanna, who had just taken a drink, started choking in shock, water dribbling down her pajama shirt. " _Marge_? As in, _Aunt_ Marge?" After Uncle Vernon's sharp nod, Evanna muttered, "Why wasn't I aware of this?"

"Because I don't see fit to inform you if this information!" Uncle Vernon snapped, and Dudley made a sort of ' _ooooh_ ' noise, which Evanna silenced with a glare. "She'll be here for a week. Speaking of Marge, there are a few things that need to be set straight."

Evanna groaned, but Uncle Vernon spoke over her. "Firstly, you'll keep a civil tongue in your head when you're talking to Marge."

"Only if she remembers the golden rule," Evanna muttered darkly under her breath.

" _Secondly_ ," Uncle Vernon continued, ignoring Evanna's mutterings, "as Marge doesn't know anything about your abnormality, I don't want any — any funny stuff while she's here. You behave yourself, got me?"

"Again, golden rule is required!"

" _And thirdly_ , we've told Marge you attend St. Brutus's Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Girls."

" _What?_ " Evanna yelled in disgust. "Is that even a real school?!"

"And you'll be sticking to that story, girl, or there'll be trouble!" spat Uncle Vernon, completely ignoring her question (alerting her that it probably wasn't).

" _What if_ ," Evanna said, leaning forwards as if to make a deal, "I just went to a friends' house and then I wouldn't be a bother to anyone."

"No! I don't trust you to not take advantage of me," Uncle Vernon snarled.

Evanna rolled her eyes; what would she do to take advantage of him? But then her eyes widened as she was hit with a sudden idea.

"Well," she began slowly, "I have a new proposition to make. This year, I'm allowed to go to a village near my school, but I need a signature from my legal guardian. So if you sign it, I'll stick to your story. What school do I go to again?"

"St. Brutus's Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Girls," Uncle Vernon hissed. "And I don't need to sign any bloody paper of yours!"

Evanna shrugged, with a rather devious smirk on her face. "Well, I guess Aunt Marge will be learning all about my _real_ school. Should I show her my wand too while I'm at it? I'm not sure what'll make her more mad, that I'm a witch," Evanna grinned deviously at Uncle Vernon, "or that you lied about it."

Uncle Vernon's face went his signature shade of purple, as Aunt Petunia and Dudley gaped at Evanna like goldfish, and Evanna settled back in her chair smugly.

" _Fine_ ," Uncle Vernon said after he had calmed himself enough to speak, "but I will only sign the bloody permission slip _after_ Marge is gone and not a second before! You put one toe out of line and I'll be doing much worse than refusing to sign a paper!"

Evanna saluted and dashed up to her room. She hid anything that would remotely tie her to magic, and sent Hedwig off to spend the rest of the summer with Errol. Then she was back downstairs, waiting for Aunt Marge to arrive.

Aunt Petunia stared disapprovingly at Evanna's hair, which was in its usual messy braid. She was very disappointed that Evanna had inherited her father's unruly hair. Then she glowered at her outfit. "Who are the weird sisters?"

Evanna peered down at her t-shirt, which had the name 'Weird Sisters' in a neat cursive. It was one of the t-shirts that Ginny had given her. Ginny had said that they were a really great wizarding band, and she had promised that she would let Evanna listen to some of their songs.

"A band," said Evanna, not in the mood to upset her aunt.

Suddenly (or at least, it seemed sudden to Evanna), the sound of Uncle Vernon's car returned reached Evanna's ears. She gulped, knowing this was going to be a long week.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hedwig?"

George was surprised to find Evanna's owl trying to squeeze into the same perch as Errol. Well, he wasn't exactly surprised to find her owl, but the strange part was how Hedwig seemed to be trying to make herself at home, and with only one note attached to her leg.

He took the note and passed Hedwig a treat. She hooted happily, nuzzling her head under his hand. He scratched her head, chuckling slightly, as he opened the envelope addressed to _Any of you DAMN Weasleys (except Ginny; I like Ginny, I wouldn't 'damn' her)._

_Dear Fred/George/Ron/Ginny/Whoever,_

_I need you to watch my owl for about a week, pretty please! Let me explain Nope, let me sum it up. Aunt coming over. No magic. This wins me a signature to go to Hogsmeade._

_See you at the end of the summer!_

_Evanna_

George smiled. "Well, Hedwig, I guess you'll be chilling out with us for the week."

The owl hooted, letting George continue to scratch her head.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The week had seemed like an eternity to Evanna, but finally it had come to the last evening of Aunt Marge's stay. She had made it through the week with only one moment of accidental magic, making Marge's glass explode. Luckily, Aunt Marge had blamed it on her own firm grip. But now Evanna had to be extra careful.

Right now, they were sitting at the dinner table, and Aunt Marge was looking rather drunk, rambling about different things. Evanna worried about this, and wanted to go up to her room, but one look from Uncle Vernon and she knew she'd have to stay for a while longer.

"Now, this one here — "

Evanna nearly let out a groan, but caught herself just in time. The conversation had turned to her, and Aunt Marge especially loved criticizing her. Evanna just needed to calm down and force herself to ignore it.

"This one's got a mean, runty look about her. You get that with dogs. I had Colonel Fubster drown one last year. Ratty little thing it was. Weak. Underbred."

Evanna looked down at herself. Mean? She looked many things, but mean? And why was she being compared to a dog? Earlier that week, she had been comparing her mother to a dog as well ("If there's something wrong with the bitch, then there's something wrong with the pup.") That had resulted in Evanna accidentally blowing up Aunt Marge's glass.

"It all comes down to blood, as I was saying the other day. Bad blood will out. Now, I'm saying nothing against your family, Petunia" — she patted Aunt Petunia's bony hand with her shovel-like one — "but your sister was a bad egg. They turn up in the best families. Then she ran off with a wastrel and here's the result right in front of us."

Evanna's breathing became short and heavy, her anger struggling to stay below the surface.

"This Potter," said Aunt Marge loudly, seizing the brandy bottle and splashing more into her glass and over the tablecloth, "you never told me what he did?"

Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were looking extremely tense. Dudley had even looked up from his pie to gape at his parents.

"He — didn't work," said Uncle Vernon, with half a glance at Evanna, and it was obvious that he could tell she was fuming. "Unemployed."

"As I expected!" said Aunt Marge, taking a huge swig of brandy and wiping her chin on her sleeve. "A no-account, good-for-nothing, lazy scrounger who — "

"He was not," said Evanna suddenly. The table went very quiet. Evanna was shaking all over. She had never felt so angry in her life.

"MORE BRANDY!" yelled Uncle Vernon, who had gone very white. He emptied the bottle into Aunt Marge's glass. "You, girl," he snarled at Evanna. "Go to bed, go on — "

"No, Vernon," hiccupped Aunt Marge, holding up a hand, her tiny bloodshot eyes fixed on Evanna's. "Go on, girl, go on. Proud of your parents, are you? They go and get themselves killed in a car crash (drunk, I expect) — "

"They didn't die in a car crash, they died protecting me from a murderer — !" Evanna yelled, jumping to her feet, grabbing for her wand, but then she remembered that she had left it upstairs.

"They died in a car crash, you nasty little liar, and left you to be a burden on their decent, hardworking relatives!" screamed Aunt Marge, swelling with fury. "You are an insolent, ungrateful little — "

Evanna had been staring right at Marge, her eyes filled with fury, but now she had stumbled backwards in horror, watching as the woman, who was already relatively large, grew even larger, swelling and beginning to float up to the ceiling, as if someone was blowing her up like a balloon —

As her uncle and aunt attempted to get the woman off of the ceiling, Evanna turned on her heel and ran from the room, nearly slamming into the wall before running up the stairs. She had to get out of here. That magic was definitely enough to get the Ministry's attention. She was going to be expelled. But she couldn't stay here. But she couldn't go there either.

As she packed her things into her trunk, grabbing Hedwig's cage under her arm and shoving her wand behind her ear, she decided she would go to someone's house. She didn't know who yet, but she would take her broom and fly to someone's house. Or something. Honestly, she didn't have time or energy to work out the details now, she was just so mad.

She stomped quickly down the stairs, meeting Uncle Vernon at the bottom, his face purple.

"COME BACK IN HERE!" he bellowed. "COME BACK AND PUT HER RIGHT!"

Evanna pulled her wand from behind her ear, shoving it under the man's neck. "She deserved it. Hell, you _all_ deserve it!" She restrained herself from _actually_ making the whole family swell (she was in enough trouble as it was, plus she didn't know the spell). "I'm leaving! Stay away from me!"

She tore open the front door and stomped out into the dark of the night. She didn't stop walking until she had reached Magnolia Crescent, sitting stubbornly on a low wall. She flung open a small notebook, which had all the information she needed to contact or visit any of her friends.

"Let's see . . ." she hummed, looking through the addresses. "Mione and the Weasleys aren't back for another few weeks, I can't just invade their houses . . . Neville is too far away . . . Dean had told me that his house is quite small and he has a handful of half-sisters, I wouldn't want to invade their house without invitation . . ." She paused at Daphne's name. She was pureblood and had a huge manor in the middle of nowhere and told Evanna that she was welcome anytime . . . "But I don't know where it is," Evanna sighed, looking at the address.

She paused again, listening with wide eyes. She could hear growling coming from an alleyway. She peered into the dark alley, wand at the ready, trying to see if there was a threat. But then a large black dog came out into the open, looking malnourished and sad.

A huge smile spread across Evanna's face; she loved dogs! She put her wand back behind her ear and hugged the dog close, scratching it behind its ears, saying, "Hey, big guy! Aww, you're a cuddly one! Do you have an owner boy?"

The dog simply looked at her.

She sighed. "I don't suppose you know what I'm supposed to do for a place to stay . . ."

The dog's eyes widened, as if it understood and was shocked that Evanna didn't have a home. But then it just grabbed Evanna's wand from behind her ear, wagging its tail and running towards the street. It turned to see if Evanna was following, a doggy smile on its face.

Evanna smiled half-heartedly. "You can't play with that, boy, it's not a normal stick."

The dog dropped the wand in disappointment, then gave a yelp when a large purple bus appeared on the street with a bang. Evanna gasped as the dog darted away. She stood up, staring up at the triple-decker bus in awe. Gold lettering over the windshield spelled _The Knight Bus_. She almost didn't notice when a conductor in a purple uniform leapt out of the bus, until he began to speak.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard just stick out your wand hand, step on board, and we can take you anywhere you want to go. My name is Stan Shunpike, and I will be your conductor this evening."

"Pleased to meet you, Stan," Evanna said. "So, you could take me anywhere?"

But Stan's eyes had shifted to her forehead. She realized that her scar was almost visible through her hair. She quickly shifted her braid so that the hair covered it more. She really didn't want anyone knowing who she was, at least not yet.

"Woss that on your 'ead?"

"My hair," she said coolly. "I know it's not ginger, it's more crimson, and I was born with it!"

"Sorry," Stan said, obviously not sorry. "Woss your name?"

"Lavender," Evanna said the first name that came to mind, then cursed herself for not saying Ginny, which she could've pulled off with her red hair, even though hers was much darker. "Lavender Brown. Could you take this bus to the Greengrass Estate?"

"Yep, that's eleven sickles. but for firteen you get 'ot chocolate, and for fifteen you get an 'ot-water bottle an' a toofbrush in the color of your choice," Stan added.

Evanna rummaged in her trunk and handed him eleven sickles. "Thanks," she said, as she boarded the bus.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius stared as the Knight Bus disappeared with a bang. He couldn't believe it. Well, there were a few things he couldn't believe.

One, his goddaughter had grown so much. She was a spitting image of her parents, with her mother's features, but nobody other than James' daughter could have hair that unruly. She had James' expressions too, and her personality was definitely a mix of them both. He wished he could've been there while she was growing up . . .

Two, she didn't have a place to stay?! What?! Why?! He had wanted to turn back into a human right there and just hug her and tell her it would be okay. But he knew he couldn't do that. So he had grabbed her wand and summoned the Knight Bus. She would be able to get to a shelter that way.

Three, he couldn't believe how he had finally escaped. He had finally escaped after twelve years in absolute _HELL_ , and all he needed to do was find the _rat_. He let out a low growl.

Peter would soon get what he deserved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daphne Greengrass woke up with a start when there was a huge bang from outside. Her mind went frantically to _Death Eaters!_ as she grappled for her wand on her bedside table. She ended up getting tangled in her blankets and falling off the bed, but jumped up quickly flinging open her window and aiming her wand outside. But she lowered her wand in surprise when she saw the Knight Bus and she was even more surprised when she saw who stepped out.

"Daph?"

Daphne turned to see her younger sister, Astoria, at the door, peeking into her room, fear in her eyes. She must've worried that it might be Death Eaters too.

"Come on, Tori," Daphne said, grabbing her sister's hand and pulled her downstairs.

"Wait, Daph, I know you always wanted to fight off Death Eaters, but seriously — "

Daphne flung open the front door, revealing Evanna Potter, looking apprehensive, as if she were contemplating going back home.

"H-hey, Daphne," Evanna waved nervously. "Think I could crash here for a while?"

"Of course! Come in, Evanna!" Daphne ushered her friend inside. "Evanna, this is my younger sister, Astoria. She's starting Hogwarts this year. Tori, this is Evanna Potter."

Evanna smiled at Astoria kindly. "Nice to meet you, Astoria! I love your hair!"

Astoria touched her brown curls, blushing. "Th-thanks! I like your hair too."

"What's all this racket?" Honoria Greengrass came down the stairs quickly, wand in hand, husband close behind her.

Rian Greengrass aimed his wand at Evanna. "Who is she?"

"Mum, Dad, this is Evanna Potter! My friend!" Daphne said, quickly stepping in front of Evanna. "Could she stay for a while?" Daphne turned to Evanna. "How long do you need to stay?"

Evanna shrugged indecisively. "As long as you'll let me."

"The whole rest of the summer!" Astoria suggested happily.

"She's been dying to meet you," Daphne explained.

"But, I did say that I'd meet Hermione and the Weasleys at Diagon Alley during the last week of break," Evanna added. "Knowing how late they like to leave their shopping, that means the last day."

Daphne laughed as her parents came up, now smiling at Evanna.

"Of course you're welcome here, Evanna," Honoria said.

"We've heard so much about you," Rian said. "Thank you for being our daughter's friend."

"Of course! I mean, Daphne's pretty awesome, and I'm absolutely sure Astoria is too," Evanna replied.

"Come, we'll show you to the room you'll be staying in," Honoria said, as Rian took Evanna's trunk and empty owl cage. Evanna smiled widely, glad that the Greengrass' were so accommodating. She had almost forgotten about her Aunt for the time being . . .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I just made the names of Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass, I use nameberry for all my naming needs! I really liked that chapter personally. And yes, Cornelius Fudge will still make his appearance, but he'll just show up at the Greengrass Estate instead.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	39. Summer at the Greengrass's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 39: Summer at the Greengrass's
> 
> A/N: Yay new chapter! Okay, I have a handful of things to tell you, so please take a few minutes and read this before you start the chapter :)
> 
> First off, I'm going to Youth Camp on Sunday (AGH SO EXCITED ASDFGHJKL) and so I probably won't get another chapter out until AFTER I get back (which is on the Friday after) and probably not even for a while after that, because I need time to actually write it and there's no wifi/electronics up at camp. It's a beautiful place though, I go every year :D It's the most fun EVER.
> 
> Secondly, I'm writing another story as well! Don't worry, I definitely won't ever stop writing TGWL until it's actually over, but I'm just multi-tasking because I got the idea and I'm rolling with it. It's a Young Justice story, so if you watch Young Justice/like DC superheroes, maybe check it out? The first chapter will be posted soon after I post this chapter.
> 
> Thirdly, Thank you guys all for the amazing reviews! I love you!

Daphne was amazed at Evanna's explanation to why she was here. They were sitting at the dining room table, eating a full breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon and sausages, provided by Daphne's mother (their family didn't believe in the slavery of house-elves you see), while Evanna explained what had happened the night before.

"I can't get over how horrible your family is!" Astoria gasped.

"Not all Muggles are like that, of course, just like not all wizards are good," Evanna said, cutting up her pancakes. "I was just cursed with the unluckiest, and simultaneously luckiest, life of anyone ever. Lucky because of all my amazing friends, of course," she added, grinning at the Greengrass girls.

They grinned back, until there was a knock at the door. Rian Greengrass stood up, wand in hand. "If I'm not back in five minutes, get out."

Honoria gestured for the girls to get their wands out too, which they did, and the Greengrass sisters also bent their heads nervously.

"What are we so afraid of?" Evanna asked, in little more than a whisper.

"Death Eaters," Daphne squeaked, fear clearly written across her face.

"What are — ?"

Rian reappeared with none other than Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic. Fudge beamed when he saw Evanna. "Evanna! Wonderful, I'm so glad you're safe!"

"And why wouldn't I be safe?" Evanna shot back, immediately sensing something off with where this conversation was heading.

"You just ran away from your family and who knows what could've happened! The wizarding world is no stranger to — er — _wrongdoers_ ," Fudge said nervously, and a couple of villainous titles flitted through Evanna's mind, murderer being one of them. Was he worried about that man from the news?

"Are you talking about Sirius Black?"

"Any wrongdoer, really! But," Fudge sighed, "yes, slightly."

"I knew it!" she exclaimed, shocking everyone in the room.

"You — you did?" Fudge asked in surprise and anxiety.

"The crazy stuff always happens to me, Fudge," Evanna retorted. "It was only a matter of time before some Voldemort-Loving-Maniac was after me . . ."

Besides everyone cringing at the name, they seemed to handle this statement quite well.

"Well, I suppose it does seem that you have a tendency to lure trouble right to your doorstep," Fudge conceded, though he still looked nervous.

"But that can't be the only reason you came all the way here, Mr. Fudge," Daphne pressed. "There's more to your visit than just checking on Evanna's welfare."

"Ah, yes, I almost forgot," he said, turning back to the redhead. "You will be pleased to hear that we have dealt with the unfortunate blowing-up of Miss Marjorie Dursley. Two members of the Accidental Magic Reversal Department were dispatched to Privet Drive a few hours ago. Miss Dursley has been punctured and her memory has been modified. She has no recollection of the incident at all. So that's that, and no harm done. Your aunt and uncle were understandably angry, but have accepted the fact that you will indeed return to Privet Drive next summer."

"Wait, wait, _that's it?_ " Evanna asked. "Even after last year?"

"What happened last year?" Astoria asked innocently, as Daphne began to howl with laughter, remembering Evanna's face when she had told her the story.

Evanna scowled identically to when she had told the story the year before (only making the elder Greengrass sister laugh harder), saying, "A house-elf came to my house, trying to prevent me from going to Hogwarts. Long story short, he used magic, I nearly got expelled because of him, Ron and I arrived in a flying car and I nearly got expelled again." She turned to Fudge. "If you're up for exempting me from this bit of accidental magic that I _actually did_ , what about last year? I didn't even _do_ that magic!"

"Er, it's far too late for that, though I'm very sorry about that little, uh, _misunderstanding_ ," Fudge said, though he didn't sound very sorry at all. "I presume you will be staying with Rian and Honoria for the remainder of the summer. Please, do keep an eye on her," he added to the Greengrass parents. "We wouldn't want her going missing again."

Evanna slumped back into her seat. It seemed like _nobody_ trusted her anymore!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At first, Astoria had been slightly shy around Evanna, but Evanna was just such an incredibly comfortable person to be around, that it didn't take the eleven-year-old long to become Evanna's friend. But one of the best things about Evanna, to Astoria at least, is how she completely supported her biggest ambition, which none of her family thought could happen.

"I think you'd make an amazing Quidditch player!"

Daphne nearly spit out her pumpkin juice when Evanna had said this. "Evanna," she choked, "in our family, we don't really believe that Quidditch is — " she glanced at her sister " — a _worthy_ aspiration."

"Well, why not?" Evanna retorted. "I think that Astoria would be great! She has the build for it and obviously the ambition and determination."

"It's not — I mean — " Daphne was at a loss for words. "Mum!"

"Yes, dear?" Honoria, who had been in the next room over, talking with Rian, poked her head in the doorway.

"Why don't we support Astoria's desire to be a Quidditch player?" Daphne asked sheepishly.

"Because Quidditch is a harmful and useless sport. I don't want my daughter getting hurt. There is no point," Honoria said calmly, before going back to her husband.

Astoria's shoulders drooped. "See, Evanna? My family won't let me."

Evanna laughed. "So? I go against my family all the time. Besides, Quidditch is _fun_ , you'd be good at it, and you could replace one of those _snots_ who are on the team now. Ugh, the Slytherin team is full of cheaters, and it doesn't help your house rep."

Astoria's brown eyes lit up. "I can't wait! I know that first years aren't allowed to tryout usually, so next year I could try to get on the team!"

"That's the spirit!" Evanna grinned, encouragingly. Then she turned to Daphne. "I swear if you don't support her in this, you are the worst sister ever."

Daphne sighed, but gave them a slight smile. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll help you train, Stori."

Astoria let out a squeal, hugging her sister tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Then she hugged Evanna too, squealing just as much.

Evanna suddenly gasped, an idea forming in her mind. "Astoria, what if I told you you could start training now?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna placed her Nimbus 2000 on the ground beside Astoria. If Astoria was going to become a Quidditch player and replace one of the Slytherin oafs, she might as well start training as soon as possible.

Astoria was looking apprehensive, continuously pushing her short brown curls back into her bandana nervously. "Evanna, are you sure it's okay for me to use your broom on my first try?"

"Who else's broom are you going to use?" Evanna retorted with a grin. "It's fine, Astoria. Really!" she added at the girl's unsure look. "You'll do great anyways."

"We'll both be right here to help you out, Tori," Daphne piped up.

"R-right," Astoria stammered, giving a shaky laugh. "I feel silly, being so nervous about the thing I've wanted to do for years."

"If you weren't nervous, I'd be worried," Evanna said. "I mean, flying above ground on nothing but a strip of wood? Totally scary. But don't worry. Once you're up there, it feels so free that you forget you're not on the ground."

Astoria nodded, waiting for instructions from Evanna about how she was actually getting in the air.

"What you're going to start by doing is placing your hand over the broom and saying, ' _up_.' Here's a tip," Evanna added, "if the broom doesn't jump into your hand after a while, you're probably not destined to fly."

Daphne cringed at the memory of first year Neville Longbottom, who was definitely not meant to be in the air.

"Okay . . ." Astoria mumbled, moving her hand over the broomstick. She took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for the prospect of failure, and said, "Up!"

The broomstick flew into her hand right away. It shocked her for a moment, but then she grinned widely. "I did it!"

"Great job!" Daphne praised, smiling at her little sister.

Astoria looked over at Evanna. "Now what?"

"Mount the broom and try to hover above the ground," Evanna shrugged. "When I first flew, I was chasing down Draco Malfoy and it all came incredibly easily to me, so I guess I'm not exactly the best teacher."

"It's okay, I'll try to hover a bit," Astoria said, mounting Evanna's broom quickly.

She pushed off of the ground slightly, hovering in the air. She went a little bit higher, her smile growing wider each second. Inch by inch, she flew into the air, until she had started actually zooming through the sky. Evanna and Daphne cheered from the ground below, happy for the young girl.

The Greengrass Estate was very large, so Astoria could fly around without gaining attention from her parents. She had never been as happy about that as she was now. She was flying! Evanna had been right, it did give her an incredible feeling of freedom as she soared through the clouds.

It was a while before she finally landed beside the two thirteen-year-olds, and when she did, she tackled them in a tight hug. "Thank you! That was the happiest I've ever been! It was the freest I've ever felt! Thank you so much, both of you!"

Both of the older girls grinned, hugging Astoria in return. "You're welcome, Astoria."

"I'm just glad that you can actually become a Quidditch player," Evanna said, ruffling the brunette's curls affectionately. "I can't wait to verse you on the pitch! I promise I won't go easy on you."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Astoria smirked.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The remainder of the summer seemed to be going by faster than usual as Evanna spent time with the Greengrass sisters. They had been having such fun. Astoria and Evanna had gotten Daphne to time them flying around the property, to see who could go faster. The three girls had done quite a bit of baking, mostly desserts. They had even found some time to send letters to their friends (Hedwig had arrived rather soon after Evanna had; she was a very smart owl). But, they had spent most of their time at a nearby park, which was shared by Muggles and wizards alike.

Today, Daphne had promised a surprise for when they arrived at the playground, and she did not disappoint.

"Blaise! Tracey!" Evanna hugged them both. "What are you two doing here?"

"We live in the area and Daph told us about your visit! We had to come see you of course," Tracey grinned, flipping her short braids over her shoulders, much like Evanna would do.

"Do lots of wizarding families live around here?" Evanna asked, with a small giggle at Tracey's hair flipping.

"A lot of the Slytherin ones do," Blaise explained, with a smile at his friends. "It's some sort of weird tradition that pureblood families live close to each other. Especially the Slytherin ones."

"Malfoy lives around here then?" Evanna asked, slight disgust in her voice.

"Yeah, farther away than most though, because of the Muggles that live here," Astoria muttered. "They're horrible people! Muggles aren't evil, I'm friends with some of them!"

"Yeah, the Malfoys are pretty bad," Evanna agreed. "But let's stop talking about them and have some fun, right?"

"Yeah," Daphne nodded, eager to get the topic away from the Malfoy family. "Who's up for Grounders?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Ehhh, this chapter is kinda eh for me, but I was trying to get another chapter done before camp... Oh well. Next chapter will be better :) Oh yeah, Astoria is definitely replacing one of the Slytherin slime, but I'm still deciding if she should replace them this year (second first year ever to make it on a team?) or in two years (she can't do it next year because of the yule ball right). So yeah but she's definitely going to be on the team!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	40. Sirius Black's Motive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 40: Sirius Black's Motive
> 
> A/N: I'M SO SORRY THAT THIS HAS TAKEN SO LONG! I'VE BEEN SUPER BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND ANXIETY AND THERAPISTS AND PROBABLY MOVING SCHOOLS AGAIN AND CHURCH AND BLAH
> 
> So... Don't expect fast updates from here on in... (Yeah, I deleted the YJ story; couldn't keep up with my busy life.)
> 
> But my youth group is starting their own worship team and I'm singing in that, so that'll be fun! That's pretty much the most exciting thing that's happening soon, soooo yeah. I hope you like this new chapter and don't hate me for slow updates!

"Oh my Godric," Evanna breathed, pressing her nose against the glass. " _That_ is a beautiful broom."

The redhead was with the Greengrass family, shopping for supplies in Diagon Alley (simultaneously keeping an eye out for any signs of the Weasleys or Hermione). She had paused by one of her favourite shops, Quality Quidditch Supplies, only to find herself drawn to a magnificent new model of a broomstick in the window display.

"Wow," Astoria muttered. What she would give for a broom like that! _But_ , she thought as she glanced back at her parents, who were helping Daphne gather some money they had dropped, _that wasn't likely to happen._

"Oh well," Evanna said, tearing gaze from the window. She grabbed Astoria's hand in her own, pulling her along the cobblestone street. "Come on, I know it's your snack time, don't pretend it isn't. Let's get some ice cream!"

Astoria smiled as she and Evanna ran along the streets, her family in close pursuit. Another thing that was great about Evanna was how accepting she was about Astoria's disease. Astoria had type one diabetes, not to be confused with type two diabetes, as she had gotten this disease genetically. To sum it up, she had to have insulin injections everyday and she had to eat a certain times and have certain amounts so that she would be healthy, which included three snack times a day. (Score!)

"Evanna! EVANNA!"

"Ron! Hermione!"

Evanna had dropped Astoria's hand and was now making a beeline to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, where her two best friends waved frantically at her. Astoria didn't mind her sudden departure of course; if she had seen her best friends after months of being away, she'd drop everything too.

As the Greengrass family approached the three friends, Evanna suddenly seemed to remember their existence. "Oh! Ron, Hermione, this is Daphne's family, Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass, and Daphne's younger sister, Astoria, who's starting Hogwarts this year. These are my friends, Ron and Hermione." Evanna went back to her friends. "But how did you know I was staying with the Greengrass's?"

"My dad," Ron said, giving the Greengrass family a friendly wave. "How are you, Daphne?"

"Good, I think we should be on our way though," she replied, glancing at Evanna, who obviously wanted to stay and catch up with her besties. "We'll see you at school though, right Evanna?"

"Of course. Bye!" Evanna called, before pulling up a chair at Ron and Hermione's table.

"Did you really blow up your aunt, Evanna?" Hermione asked, not one for beating around the bush.

"I didn't mean to," Evanna said with a dismissive wave of her hand, "but she deserved it, the b — "

"Evanna!" Hermione scolded, sounding aghast. "That's not funny, Ron!"

Evanna leaned forwards, ignoring her giggling friend, suddenly looking serious. "But do you know why they didn't expel me? I mean, I broke a freaking law!"

"You're Evanna Potter," Ron said plainly, recovering from his fit of laughter. "They'd probably let you get away with anything. But," he brightened, "tonight we're staying at the Leaky Cauldron! My whole family and Hermione! And, if you'd like, Ginny and Hermione's room has three beds, so you could stay with us too! I mean, it didn't sound like Daphne was coming back."

"Brilliant!" Evanna grinned, hugging her friends awkwardly from across the table. Once she sat back down, she added, "So, have you already bought all of your books and things?"

"Look at this," said Ron, pulling a long thin box out of a bag and opening it. "Brand-new wand. Fourteen inches, willow, containing one unicorn tail-hair. And we've got all our books — " He pointed at a large bag under his chair. "What about those Monster Books, eh? The assistant nearly cried when we said we wanted two."

Evanna giggled, then glanced over at Hermione three bulging bags. "Hermione, are you sure you didn't take too many classes?" she asked incredulously. "I mean, you're not going to even be able to work it all into your schedule!"

"Nonsense, it'll all work out," Hermione insisted, as she checked her purse. "I've still got ten Galleons. It's my birthday in September, and Mum and Dad gave me some money to get myself an early birthday present."

"How about a nice _book_?" said Ron innocently.

"No, I don't think so," said Hermione composedly. "I really want an owl. I mean, Evanna's got Hedwig and you've got Errol — "

"I haven't," said Ron. "Errol's a family owl. All I've got is Scabbers." He pulled his pet rat out of his pocket. "And I want to get him checked over," he added, placing Scabbers on the table in front of them. "I don't think Egypt agreed with him."

Scabbers was looking thinner than usual, and there was a definite droop to his whiskers.

"There's a magical creature shop just over there," Evanna pointed out. "You could see if they've got anything for Scabbers, and Hermione can get her owl."

"Great idea," Ron agreed, pushing back his chair.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe you _bought_ that monster!" Ron exclaimed, staring at the ugly orange cat in Hermione's arms. "He nearly killed me, not to mention Scabbers!"

"He didn't mean to, did you, Crookshanks?" said Hermione.

"And what about Scabbers?" said Ron, pointing at the lump in his chest pocket. "He needs rest and relaxation! How's he going to get it with that thing around?"

"That reminds me, you forgot your rat tonic," said Hermione, slapping the small red bottle into Ron's hand. "And stop worrying, Crookshanks will be sleeping in my dormitory and Scabbers in yours, what's the problem? Poor Crookshanks, that witch said he'd been in there for ages; no one wanted him."

"Wonder why," said Ron sarcastically as they entered the Leaky Cauldron.

"Evanna!" Mr. Weasley greeted, setting down his edition of the Daily Prophet to properly look at the trio. "How are you?"

"I'm wonderful," Evanna grinned, but her grin faded as soon as she saw the cover of his newspaper. "They haven't caught him yet?" she asked, pointing at the maniacal face of Sirius Black.

"No," said Mr. Weasley, looking extremely grave. "They've pulled us all off our regular jobs at the Ministry to try and find him, but no luck so far."

"Hmm," was Evanna's reply, ignoring Ron's comment about reward money. She grinned when she saw the rest of the Weasley family enter. She was about to run and give the twins and Ginny hugs, but she was distracted by Percy coming up and greeting her.

"Evanna. How nice to see you."

"Hello, Percy," Evanna said, biting her lip to keep from giggling.

"I hope you're well?" said Percy pompously, shaking hands. It was rather like being introduced to the mayor.

"Really well, thanks — "

"Vanna!" Fred exclaimed, elbowing Percy out of the way and bowing deeply. "Simply splendid to see you — "

"Marvelous," said George, pushing Fred aside and seizing Evanna's hand in turn. "Absolutely spiffing."

Percy scowled.

"That's enough, now," said Mrs. Weasley.

"Mum!" said Fred, as though he'd only just spotted her and seizing her hand, too. "How really corking to see you — "

"I said, that's enough," said Mrs. Weasley, depositing her shopping in an empty chair. "Hello, Evanna, dear. I suppose you've heard our exciting news?" She pointed to the brand-new silver badge on Percy's chest. "Second Head Boy in the family!" she said, swelling with pride.

"And last," Fred muttered under his breath.

"I don't doubt that," said Mrs. Weasley, frowning suddenly. "I notice they haven't made you two prefects."

"What do we want to be prefects for?" said George, looking revolted at the very idea. "It'd take all the fun out of life."

Ginny giggled.

"You want to set a better example for your sister!" snapped Mrs. Weasley.

"I'll keep them in line," Evanna put in, with a salute. She pretended to whip the boys who in turn pretended to be hurt and fall to the ground. They laughed as Percy began fuming.

"Ginny's got other brothers to set her an example, Mother," said Percy loftily. "I'm going up to change for dinner . . ."

"Not that I'd want him as an example," Ginny muttered under her breath. "The twins are much more fun."

"Now, Ginny, you know perfectly well that Percy is a wonderful older brother, despite his uncanny ability to make any situation boring," Evanna said seriously, but cracked a grin as soon as Ginny began giggling. "Okay, I meant that to be a bit funny, but I'm serious! He cares a lot about all of you, you know."

"Yeah," Ginny sighed, "I know."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"The ministry is providing the cars on behalf of me, aren't they?" Evanna asked bluntly after dinner, when all the Weasley children and Hermione had gone to their rooms. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley exchanged surprised glances.

"What makes you think that, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked, nerves clear in her voice.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Evanna said. "Sirius Black."

"And, ahem, what about him?" Mr. Weasley asked, equally nervous.

Evanna shook her head. "I'm not stupid, Mr. Weasley. He's coming after me. I mean, I was the key part in his master's destruction, it's obvious he'd want to exact his revenge, right? Besides, everything crazy happens to me, it only makes sense that a mass murderer would be next," she added.

The Weasley parents exchanged shocked looks as Evanna grabbed Ron's bottle of rat tonic and headed upstairs. That girl was a mystery.

"Hey Vanna," Fred whispered, through his gulps of laughter. Both he and George were laughing at the sound of Percy reprimanding Ron for the badge he didn't steal and completely turning the room upside down to find it.

George nudged Evanna, handing her Percy's lost badge, with a minor modification. Evanna had to cover her mouth to keep from giggling too loudly.

"Bighead Boy," she giggled, giving each twin a hi-five. "Nice."

She knocked on Ron's door, opening it and tossing him his rat tonic. He thanked her and she went off to the room where she was staying with Hermione and Ginny.

Evanna acted like nothing happened, like she hadn't worked out that Black was coming after her. She wasn't that nervous anyways. She didn't know why, but for some reason, she felt that the safest place she could be would be Hogwarts, even though the safety she would find would be debatable. After all, for the last two school years, she had been in unbelievable danger, but maybe that's why she felt safe this year. A mass murderer was nothing compared to Old Voldy himself, and she had beaten him three times now.

"Evanna?" Hermione's voice woke Evanna from her thoughts. "Are you alright?"

Evanna nodded distractedly. "Yeah. Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"You've been sitting there with your sketchbook open in front of you and a pencil in your hand, but you haven't drawn a thing," Ginny supplied, hopping onto Evanna's bed beside her.

"Usually you hide it better than this," Hermione added.

Evanna sighed. She couldn't tell them about Black, at least not yet. She didn't want to worry them. But they were right, she usually hid her worry better than this.

"I just . . . My aunt and uncle didn't sign my permission slip to Hogsmeade like I hoped they would. I mean, I shouldn't be surprised, I _did_ blow up my uncle's sister . . . But I was just looking forwards to it," Evanna said truthfully, shrugging nonchalantly. "It's no big deal, I guess."

"Aw, that's too bad!" Hermione sighed. "Ron was telling me what fun it would be, the three of us at Hogsmeade, and I know the twins were wanting to take you to their favourite store . . ."

"I think what Hermione's trying to say, is that you can hang out with me and my friend, Luna, during Hogsmeade trips. We can't go yet either, we're not old enough," Ginny suggested. "You could bring Astoria Greengrass. From what you've said about her, I'd like to meet her too."

Evanna allowed a small smile to slip onto her face. "Thanks, Ginny. And Hermione, maybe you and Ron could just use a bit of my money to buy me some sweets and things? I've heard very highly of a place called Honeydukes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I HOPE YOU LIKED THIS CHAPTER, I KNOW I DID! CHECK OUT MY PROFILE (ON FANFICTION . NET)(SAME USERNAME) FOR MORE OF MY SOCIAL MEDIA! (You know, if you want to keep up with my life or see fanart or whatever)
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	41. The Hooded Creature of Depression

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 41: The Hooded Creature of Depression
> 
> A/N: YAY ANOTHER CHAPTER! THIS ONE IS FILLED WITH DRINNY GOODNESS ;) ALSO I WOULD LIKE TO THANK myafroatemydog AND fifespice FOR YOUR MULTIPLE WONDERFUL REVIEWS! HOPE YOU ENJOY!

Evanna didn't think much of the sleeping man next to her. Though his name sounded really familiar, she ignored his quiet snores and preoccupied herself with telling her friends about Black instead.

Mr. Weasley had caught her before she boarded the train and made her swear she wouldn't go out looking for Sirius Black. That's when she has decided she needed to tell her friends about this.

So here they sat, in the last available compartment, with Ron, Ginny, and the peacefully slumbering Professor R.J. Lupin beside her, and Hermione and the twins across from them. Evanna took a deep breath in and spoke.

"Sirius Black is coming after me."

There were a mix of gasps and shocked expressions, along with Ginny's whisper of, "I knew it!"

When everyone turned to the smallest redhead, she shrugged. "After spending almost a year in Tom Riddle's head, I kinda know how he and his followers would act. Obviously, if it's true that Sirius Black _was_ one of his followers, then he's definitely coming after Evanna."

"You are so perceptive, I can't stand it," Evanna grinned. "It's amazing!"

Ginny grinned, but Fred interrupted, saying, "But how did he escape?!"

Evanna shrugged nonchalantly.

"Eva," George muttered, looking into Evanna's bright green eyes, "aren't you even a little but scared?"

"Of course she's not," Ron rolled his eyes. "This is just You-Know-Who's puppy. She's already faced the real thing twice, his mass murderer right-hand man isn't a problem."

Evanna laughed. "Couldn't have said it better myself."

"As long as you don't go looking for trouble — " Hermione began, but Evanna cut her off with another laugh.

"I _never_ look for trouble!" She giggled as her friends made noises of disagreement. "Okay fine. I love looking for trouble! But I solemnly swear that I won't look for _this_ trouble!"

"Solemnly swear?" Fred laughed.

"It's more solemn than a normal swear," Evanna giggled.

"More solemn than shit?" Ron asked, and everyone burst out laughing.

The teacher beside Evanna stirred and they all quieted down.

For a few minutes, they discussed Sirius Black in low voices. None of them could figure out how he escaped, and none of them wanted to know what would happen if he did make it to Hogwarts. Evanna's sneakoscope went off once, but none of them could figure out why.

"Let's move on the better topics," Ron said finally. "How about Hogsmeade?"

"How about not," Ginny said, glancing surreptitiously over at Evanna.

"I know you can't go, Ginny, but the rest of us can," Ron said, but Evanna shook her head.

"I can't go either, Ron. My aunt and uncle didn't sign my form. Unsurprisingly," she sighed.

"Oh no! We wanted to show you Zonko's!" Fred groaned.

"Next year maybe," Evanna sighed. "I'm sure nobody's going to bend the rules for me, especially now."

"But we'll be with you!" Ron exclaimed. "Black wouldn't hurt you with tons of people milling around!"

"Ron! Mass Murderer! Thirteen people! What's a few kids to Sirius Black?" Ginny said, with a hit upside Ron's head for good measure.

"Ron, I'll be fine. I'll be hanging with Ginny and you can bring me back some sweets. It's totally fine," Evanna insisted.

"Not for what Georgie had on mind," Fred laughed, and George punched him in the shoulder.

"Fred, shut up!" George muttered, his cheeks and ears going bright red.

Before Evanna could ask what they meant, George was saved by the candy trolley. As he and Fred grabbed a few things, Evanna turned to the teacher beside her.

"I suppose we should wake him?" Ron suggested.

"Hello? Um, Professor Lupin? Would you like to have some food?" Evanna asked, hesitantly shaking the man. He didn't wake.

The witch who pushed the trolley assured them that when he did wake, she would be at the front of the train if he wanted anything, and she went to the next compartment.

"Evanna, aren't you hungry?" Ginny asked tentatively, looking at the candies in her hands.

"Oh, no I brought my own," Evanna said with a grin. "When I was at the Greengrass', they let me go shopping. I bought my favourite Muggle candies. I have enough for everyone, you want some?"

Hermione grinned when she saw a long stick of Blackpool Rock. "I love Blackpool Rock! I mean, not too much of course, it's bad for your teeth, but it's my favourite!"

Evanna grinned. "Ever the dentist's daughter."

Then she surprised the Weasleys by lifting the long stick and hitting it against her seat, with a "Hi-yah!" noise. It broke into a couple of pieces and she passed one to Hermione.

She looked expectantly up at the Weasleys. "Do you want some too?"

They still looked like they were in shock, but Hermione seemed to be enjoying the candy, so they agreed. A couple more breaks later, and everyone had a piece.

"It's really good," Ginny said, as she sucked on her piece of candy. "Like peppermint."

"I also have some of my favourite chocolate bars and a bunch more candies," Evanna said, grinning widely. "Mars Bars, Smarties, Maltesers, et cetera. I have some Turkish Delight too, but it's honestly not my favourite. Take your pick! But leave some Mars for me, they're my favourite."

As her friends each grabbed sweets from Evanna's bag, a familiar blonde came sauntering in, with his cronies on each side. Evanna rolled her eyes as he smirked at their crew.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Draco Malfoy smirked, his grey eyes scanning them. He flinched when his eyes landed on Ginny, who stared up at him resolutely. Evanna glanced between the two, unawares of their meeting at the end of the year before.

"Careful, Malfoy," Ginny said slyly, nodding towards Professor Lupin's sleeping figure, who Malfoy obviously hadn't noticed before then, as he flinched again when he saw him. "Don't make trouble in front of our new professor now."

Malfoy, with a last look at Ginny, ushered Crabbe and Goyle away from the scene. Ginny smirked, leaning back in her seat, but Evanna was more focused on the looks the pair had been giving each other.

Ginny yawned and got to her feet. "I think I'm going to go to the washroom. I'll be back soon," she said nonchalantly, with only Evanna wondering where she was really going.

Ginny bumped straight into Malfoy in the corridor, though it seemed he was having the same idea she was, since his flunkies were nowhere to be seen. He grabbed her shoulders to keep her upright, then realizing his gesture of kindness, he quickly let go, blushing.

"Why are you being so weird?" Ginny hissed. "You hate my family! But you're acting . . . _nice_ to me!"

Draco didn't make eye contact as he said, "Well, you're not . . . I mean, you're . . . You're not like your brothers, okay?! You don't make fun of me like everyone else does."

Ginny felt her heart skip a beat in shock. "You get bullied?"

Draco went red and shoved Ginny aside to get by her. "Whatever, Weasley. Just get out of my face."

Ginny watched as he walked away, a frown on her face. But before he had gotten too far, the train slowed to a sudden stop and both children toppled over, Ginny landing on top of Draco.

"What's going on?" Ginny asked fearfully, looking around the train, where the lights were now flickering off.

"Is it getting colder, or is it just me?" Draco muttered with a shiver, as he and Ginny got carefully to their feet.

"I can't see anything," Ginny said, beginning to breath more heavily. Darkness had become a major fear of hers since the whole Tom Riddle incident.

"Hey," Draco said, grabbing her shoulders yet again, but this time not letting go, "it's okay. Let your eyes adjust to the darkness."

When Ginny's breathing started to become hyperventilation, Draco grabbed his wand from his pocket. "Lumos." He looked at her. "Is that better?"

She nodded slowly, casting a glance towards the compartment her brothers and friends were in. She linked her fingers in Draco's. "Come on, we should get into a compartment. The one I was in had a teacher in it, he might be able to tell us what's going on."

Draco glanced back at where Crabbe and Goyle were, but followed the youngest Weasley to her compartment. He made sure to rip his hand from hers once they were inside.

"Malfoy?!" Fred cried in disgust (at least Draco thought it was Fred). Draco saw Ginny shoot him a sympathetic look.

"And Ginny," George sighed in relief. "We were worried about you, Gin."

"He had a light, so I followed him," Ginny whispered, and her brothers exchanged glances. They all knew about her nyctophobia and various other fears.

"Does anyone know what's going on?" Draco asked, in his dignified sort of voice, as if asking this bunch was far below him, trying to pretend he didn't just talk civilly with Ginny moments again.

"No one knows anything, Malfoy," Hermione sighed. "I wish we did."

Draco waved his light around the small room, nearly dropping his wand when he saw a pair of pale green eyes staring at him. Professor Lupin had woken up.

"Quiet," the teacher said in a hoarse voice standing up and handing out a handful of flames in his hand.

Ginny tugged on gently Draco's sleeve, while everyone else was preoccupied with staring at the professor's flames, and pointed to the man's now vacant seat. Draco understood and sat down, watching as Ginny did the same on the other side of the bench.

"Stay where you are," Professor Lupin said in the same hoarse voice, and he got slowly to his feet with his handful of fire held out in front of him.

But before the man could open the door, it was opened for him. Draco looked on in horror as he saw one of the guards at Azkaban enter. He of course knew what they were. His father had often talked about Azkaban when he was younger, always afraid of being thrown in prison, always afraid of being exposed as a Death Eater. Afraid of the Dementors.

At the time Draco hadn't understood — how scary could a guard be? — but now, all he could feel was cold, dark, fear. The dementor seemed to suck all of the life from the room, all of the happy memories. All he could remember was his father — his intimidating and angry father — and the memories of bullying. He couldn't focus, he couldn't see, he was captured by memory and darkness and this creature, this horrible creature.

Draco barely registered as Professor Lupin said, "None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks. Go," or as he shot a silver mist at the beast and it retreated. It took him a moment to really slow his breathing and remember things other than fear. The darkness had been overwhelming —

Wait, the darkness.

_Ginny_.

He looked over towards her. She was doubled over, staring at the floor, looking like she was about to be sick. She was crying and shaking like mad, but it seemed like she would recover. He held back a sigh of relief. Though it was true he wouldn't mind being friends with her, he had a reputation to uphold.

That's when he noticed Evanna on the floor. Now, Evanna Potter did faint on occasion, when she was extremely scared or overwhelmed, but this just seemed . . . _off_ for some reason. Maybe it was because nobody else had fainted. They _were_ gathered around her on the floor though.

"Evanna! Evanna! Are you alright?" Hermione asked, and Ron slapped the unconscious girl across the face a couple times, until Hermione grabbed his hand away, glaring at him.

Draco watched as one of the Weasley twins intertwined his fingers with hers (it must've been George; he had never seen a more obvious crush) and she blinked a couple of times.

As everyone inquired about Evanna's welfare, Draco's eyes had gravitated back to Ginny. She was sitting up now, her knees pulled to her chest, shaking terribly and still white as a sheet, her freckles standing out even more. She caught his gaze and, he could've been imagining it, she gave him a tiny smile.

Evanna kept asking who had screamed, so Draco decided to put in his two cents (even though recently, he hadn't felt like being mean to the bunch). "Nobody screamed, Potter! Why don't you get your ears checked?"

"How about you, Malfoy?" Evanna asked,electing to ignore his rude comment. "Are you alright after that — that thing?"

Draco scoffed as he got to his feet, hiding his shaking hands in his pockets. "Of course, Potter! I'm not the one who _fainted_!"

The way Evanna looked at him made he realize he hadn't sounded malicious enough. He stomped out of the compartment quickly, but not without a final glance at Ginny.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Is it true that you fainted, Evanna?"

All of the third year Gryffindors were crowded together around the fire, talking and laughing happily. Well, the conversation was happy until Parvati just hesitantly asked this question.

"Oh," Evanna sighed, "has it gotten around that fast?"

"'Fraid so," Seamus said.

"Well, yes, it's true," Evanna muttered, feeling slightly self-conscious, considering she was the only one who had fainted.

"I guess we shouldn't be surprised with Draco Malfoy as a witness," Ron growled. "We should've kicked him out!"

"Why was Draco Malfoy in your compartment?" Neville asked in surprise.

"Well, Ginny has a phobia of the dark," Hermione explained, "and they had both been in the hall when the lights went out. Ginny went into a state of panic, but Malfoy lit his wand, so she pretty much clung to him. They made it into our compartment just before the dementor came in."

"I agree with Ron, you should've kicked him out as soon as he brought Ginny back!" Lavender exclaimed, and Ron gave her a hi-five.

"It's okay I guess," Evanna said. "I mean, I'm sure that out of this huge school, I'm not the only one who fainted."

"Yeah, and I'm sure if it had been in our compartment much longer, I would've fainted too," Parvati said, shivering. "It was the most horrible feeling."

They all nodded in agreement, with a few shivers.

"I can't believe these _things_ are going to be staying here!" Evanna cried angrily. "I'm going to be _way_ off my game with those things here! If anything mysterious happens, it's going to take me a solid week to solve it!"

"A whole week?" Dean smirked. "Wow, that _is_ really off your game."

Neville laughed. "You just better hope nothing mysterious happens this year then!"

"And what are the chances of that?" Seamus grinned. "I guess you'll just need to let people help you out if that does happen, Evanna."

Evanna let out a final sigh, but still smiled. "You guys are the best."

"Oh, we know," Ron laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: About the British candies I mentioned: Most of those are also in Canada (as you might know, Canada takes after Britain A LOT)(British Columbia guys)(also, I'm referring to to chocolate smarties, not gross American smarties), except for Turkish Delight and Blackpool Rock, which are real candies too.
> 
> I know Turkish Delight from Narnia (Edmund and his love for them you know), and my friend/childrens pastor, Rose, is British, and she brought some Blackpool Rock to our kids program once. It was really good, like a candy cane :) Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter and the amount of Ginny/Draco bonding didn't overwhelm you! ("You're overwhelmed, Freeze was underwhelmed, why isn't anyone ever just whelmed?")
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	42. Omens of Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 42: Omens of Death
> 
> A/N: Okay, get ready for a long Author's Note, I'm sorry, but please read.
> 
> Dear All of my AMAZING Followers,
> 
> Thank you for being so patient with me and for such kind reviews. I'm sorry, it was childish of me to 'go on strike' but in all honesty, I needed a break. I mean, I'm starting a new school tomorrow and I'm so scared. I have mega anxiety, and flames just make me want to stop writing... Not because I take them seriously, but because anxiety is a mental illness and it's yelling, "YOU'RE A TERRIBLE WRITER JAYCE YOU SHOULD STOP NO ONE LIKES THIS STORY!" So you might understand my struggle.
> 
> I'm sorry that this chapter is shorter than usual, but I was feeling bad for leaving the story for so long, so I kind of rushed this one. It has lots of bonding and references to future pairings and hopefully you like it. Also, I understand that this story isn't the most well written, and I appreciate constructive criticism, but I'm pretty busy and this story isn't always my top priority, so please forgive me for any grammar errors I make.
> 
> Lastly, I've begun to seriously work on some original ideas, for actual books. I might post snippets of some of my stuff on my wattpad, tumblr, maybe fictionpress too, if any of you are interested in teenage spy geniuses, supervillains and heroes rebelling against society, and much more! (At the moment I'm working mostly on the teenage spy geniuses so if you like spies then maybe check it out? Go to my profile for links to my various social medias)
> 
> I love you guys! *hugs and kisses*
> 
> Love from, Jayce

Evanna dropped into a seat at the Gryffindor table, next to George. She heaved a dramatic sigh, laying her forehead on the table. George grinned at her dramatics, sliding a sheet of paper to her.

"New third-year course schedules," he explained. "You okay, Eva?"

"Malfoy's been teasing her. Wait, no, _all_ the Slytherins have," said Ron, sitting down on Evanna's other side and glaring over at the Slytherin table.

"Hey, Potter!" shrieked Pansy Parkinson, whose appearance strongly resembled that of a pug. "Potter! The dementors are coming, Potter! Woooooooooo!"

George looked up in time to see Pansy pretending to faint with terror. But his eyes were focused on the three who were coming towards them. "Better retract that statement, Ron."

"Thanks, Weasley," Blaise said, as he, Daphne, and Tracey came up, sitting next to Ginny. "We came to see how you lot were doing."

"Oh, we're fine thanks," Hermione said with a smile. She glanced at Evanna's head on the table, and the three Slytherins, who were also looking over at Evanna. "Well, most of us are."

"I thought Pansy was just being a git like always," Daphne said. "Did you really faint?"

Evanna let out another groan.

"Well, she wasn't doing so well in our compartment. Started babbling about You-Know-Who and Death Eaters and Azkaban," Tracey laughed. "She practically jumped on Blaise's lap when the dementor came in."

Blaise scowled. "Don't remind me."

Fred laughed. "Malfoy came running into our compartment too. He was white as a sheet and I swear he would've wet himself."

"But none of us were really too happy about it, were we?" Ginny pointed out, sensibly. "They affect everyone, and in different ways, depending on your bad memories, right?"

"Right," Hermione nodded, "which means it makes sense you fainted, Evanna. You probably have the worst memories of any of us. I mean, no offense."

"I guess so," Evanna sighed, obviously still feeling down about being the only one who passed out.

"Wait, what about you, Ginny?" Tracey asked. "I mean, thinking about everything that happened last year . . ."

Ginny shrugged. "I guess I'm stronger than I look."

Meanwhile, Ron had grabbed Hermione's schedule from her hands in disbelief. "Hermione, they've messed up your schedule!"

Evanna leaned over and let out a whistle. "You've got about ten subjects a day and three in the same hour! Hermione, that's impossible!"

"Not impossible, McGonagall fixed it all up for me. Don't worry," Hermione said with an air of nonchalance.

"But look, this morning you're supposed to be in Divination, Muggle Studies, _and_ Arithmancy — _all at nine o'clock!_ Hermione, this _is_ impossible!" Ron argued, glancing at the others. "You guys see how impossible this is, right?"

"For once, I agree with Ron," Fred said. "I mean, you're really good at school, Hermione, but three classes at once? Even you're not that good."

"Nonsense, Fred, nobody can be in three classes at once," Hermione said calmly, once confusing everyone more.

"But then how — "

"And why do you care about my education so much? Considering your grades, you should be focusing more on your own," Hermione snapped, and Fred's cheeks went red with anger and embarrassment.

"I don't. I don't care," he muttered, turning away.

"Well, we should be heading to Divination anyways," Hermione said, standing up. "Come on, Evanna. Come on, Ron."

The redheads exchanged glances, and following their friend out of the Great Hall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well, Divination was a complete waste of time," Hermione sighed, pulling out an Arithmancy book which Ron and Evanna couldn't figure out how she'd gotten.

But Ron didn't seem convinced. "Evanna, you haven't seen a great big black dog anywhere, have you?"

"Yeah, when I left the Dursleys," Evanna said truthfully. "But he was playful and cuddly and definitely didn't wish me to befall any harsh deaths." She paused, her expression growing impassive. "But you know, maybe Trelawney's right."

Hermione dropped her fork. "What?!"

"I mean, since Volde — Tom Riddle's right-hand man _is_ coming after me, and he _did_ murder thirteen people — "

"Evanna, don't talk like that!" Ron said, sounding more nervous still. "I'm sorry I brought it up, just _please_."

At the pleading look on Ron's face, Evanna's expression softened. "I'm sorry, I was just kidding, Ron. I know I shouldn't joke about that — "

"You didn't sound like you were joking," Hermione whispered.

"I just — I mean — " Evanna struggled for an answer that didn't sound like she was secretly freaking out. "I'm sorry. I honestly didn't mean to freak you guys out."

"It's alright, just . . ." Hermione began. She hesitated, exchanging a look with Ron, then both of them flung their arms around their best friend. "Please be careful, Evanna!"

"Of course," Evanna said, tightening the hug. "I promise. I wouldn't die, I swear."

"Well, I sure hope you don't," Fred said, coming up and sitting across from the trio. George was beside him in an instant. "Why do we think Evanna's going to be kicking the bucket soon?"

"A mix of Sirius Black and Divination class," Evanna said calmly, going back to her food and pretending she hadn't just been about to cry.

"Sirius Black is nowhere near here, so no need to worry," Fred said with a yawn, stealing an apple from Hermione's plate. She stared at him in disbelief.

"Wha — Why take _my_ apple? _There's a whole bowl of fruit in front of you_!" she exclaimed. Fred just took a large bite of it and winked. Hermione let out a cry of exasperation and took an orange.

"What happened at Divination?" George asked nonchalantly.

Ron gulped. "Evanna had a Grim in her tea leaves!"

The twins exchanged glances and burst out laughing.

"Divination is nothing but guesswork and making things up," Fred snickered. "At least it is with Trelawney. We took Divination in our third year too — thought it would be a class we could slack in, and oh boy, were we right. She's definitely not a real Seer. She can fake it pretty well, and a lot of coincidences happen in her class, but that's all they are. Coincidences."

"I agree, it's absolutely nonsense," Hermione said. "My Arithmancy class was _much_ more worthwhile."

"But Hermione, if you were at Divination this morning, then you _couldn't_ have been at Arithmancy. They're in the same hour, aren't they?" George asked.

Hermione said nothing, just peeled her orange silently. The others exchanged looks, but decided to change the subject, knowing how Hermione could get.

"So, are you excited for our first Care of Magical Creatures class?" Evanna asked, looking at Ron and Hermione.

"Um," Ron muttered uncertainly. "Well, Hagrid's teaching it, so it'll be interesting, to say the least . . ."

"Well, _I'm_ pretty excited," Evanna said, with a grin. "I really like animals. Most animals. Like, I love dogs! And cats, and owls, and — well, basically any domesticated animal!"

"Hate to break it to you, Eva, but I-Think-Dragons-Are-Domesticated Hagrid probably won't be the best teacher," George chuckled.

"Oh, I'm sure it'll be fine," Evanna said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Hagrid's a great person."

"This is the guy who assigned us books that _bite_ ," Ron pointed out.

"It has yet to be decided!" Evanna said loudly, ignoring the look the Hermione gave her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hagrid," Evanna asked in awe, looking up at some bizarre creatures that Hagrid had just brought out, "what are those?"

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. "Beau'iful, aren' they?"

"They are," Evanna breathed; she had always found beauty in the strangest of things.

"Come 'ere, Evanna, and I'll teach you how to ride them," Hagrid said, and Evanna gasped in excitement.

As she slowly approached the beast, Hermione and Ron were having conversation with their fellow Gryffindor third years.

"Why's she doing that?" Parvati sighed, glancing at Evanna with a worried look in her eyes. "She had a Grim! She should try to be safer, not go off riding things like that!"

"Well, luckily for us, Divination isn't real," Hermione said, watching Evanna bow respectfully to the Hippogriff.

"But Hermione — "

"Parvati, you shouldn't argue with her," Ron said. "She'll just keep refuting you."

"Hey, has anyone heard anymore news about Sirius Black?" Seamus asked nervously. "Like, where he is?"

"I don't think anyone's spotted him, at least not that I've heard," Lavender reassured him. "Besides, why would Sirius Black come to Hogwarts?" Ron and Hermione exchanged glances, as Lavender continued. "Even if he did, he'd never get in, right?"

Dean shrugged. "I'm sure he wouldn't come here anyways. I mean, we're just a bunch of kids."

"WOOOO!"

They all looked up in shock as Evanna flew overhead on the Hippogriff. She looked like she was enjoying herself, and they started cheering for her loudly. She grinned down at them, slowly making her descent back to the ground.

"That was so fun!" she cried, as she touched down, and hopped off of the Hippogriff's back. She ran to her friends, as Draco Malfoy cautiously approached the beast. "Aren't Hippogriffs beautiful?"

"Beautiful?" Draco let out a laugh. "I think they're rather ugly."

Evanna facepalmed as the Hippogriff (whom, they learned from Evanna, was called Buckbeak) reared and slashed Draco's arm with its claw. Hagrid pulled Buckbeak away and Evanna helped the blonde to his feet. She tsked when she saw all of the blood around him.

"Idiot," she scoffed. "Didn't you hear Hagrid when he said Hippogriffs don't take insults well?"

Draco pulled himself away from Evanna, and subsequently fell over, yelling in pain. ("It killed me!" "Could you die quieter maybe, Malfoy?") Hagrid picked him up, quickly taking him to the hospital wing, with everyone else looking in bored and angry shock.

"They should sack him straight away!" said Pansy Parkinson, who was in tears (though Evanna suspected they were fake).

"It was Malfoy's fault!" snapped Dean. Crabbe and Goyle flexed their muscles threateningly. Dean merely rolled his eyes, turning back to the other Gryffindors. "Ugh, some people," he muttered.

As Pansy loudly announced how she was going to check on Malfoy, Blaise came over, resting his elbow on Hermione's shoulder. "I can't even fathom how stupid that was."

"Right?" Lavender agreed. "I wish Malfoy didn't bother us and try to mess everything up."

"I think everyone wishes that," Ron laughed.

"Come on, let's get back to the castle," Dean said. "There's no use standing out here. Oh, hey, Evanna, I have a new drawing I'd like to show you."

"Lead the way," Evanna grinned, skipping along with her friends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm not stupid."

Ron and Hermione looked up from where they were discussing the Care of Magical Creatures class from earlier, hoping that Hagrid wouldn't get fired. Parvati had sat next to them, looking unimpressed.

"Of course you're not, Parvati," Hermione immediately said, but Parvati only frowned at her.

"I'm not eleven anymore. I know that you two know something about Sirius Black," Parvati said, lowering her voice. "I saw you looking nervous when we were talking about him in class earlier."

"That's actually pretty cool. Evanna would be impressed," Ron said, looking rather impressed himself, until Hermione glared at him.

"Parvati, it's not our place to tell you anything," she said stubbornly.

"Whose place is it then?" Parvati asked, equally stubborn.

Hermione said nothing, but her eyes shifted to where Evanna sat on the couch, drawing with Dean.

"Wait, Parvati," Ron grabbed the Indian girl's hand as she stood to leave. "It's all a very sensitive subject, okay? Just . . . You know how Evanna is."

Parvati bit her lip, glancing over where Evanna was laughing out loud at something Neville had said. Then she looked back to Ron and Hermione, who had pleading glances on their faces.

"Yeah, okay," Parvati sighed, "I won't ask her. Not yet."

Ron and Hermione smiled gratefully, and Parvati left to go up to her dorm. Hermione turned to Ron, looking slightly amazed. "Ron, that was brilliant."

"Well, it's true, isn't it? Evanna and Parvati are good friends, we wouldn't want that getting messed up because of us," Ron said.

Hermione smiled. Ron might have his rude times, but more often than not, he was one of the more caring people Hermione knew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Oh yes, hints at Georgvanna, Fremione, Drinny, and Ronvati! Kind of subtle, but still! I hope you liked the chapter, and if you decided to ignore my Author's Note at the top, please read? Thanks, love you!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	43. The First Hogsmeade Weekend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha I forgot to post, like, four chapters on A03 sorry guys! Here they are now!
> 
> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 43: The First Hogsmeade Weekend
> 
> A/N: GUYS THIS CHAPTER IS LONGER THAN USUAL BE HAPPY :D
> 
> Anyways I hope you like it, I REALLY LIKED WRITING IT IT MADE ME SO HAPPY! and you'll see why very soon ;) happy reading!

Potions Class was easily the worst class for all of the Gryffindors. Professor Snape was a really cruel person, and Evanna didn't care if he had tried to save her life in first year, she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was getting to her. Luckily, in this Potions Class, Malfoy had come back, his arm in a sling, and it gave Evanna the perfect opportunity to tease him.

"Oh, you poor baby!" she cried, throwing herself onto him, and lifting up his arm, examining it. "You're so hurt! Oh, you poor child! You dear, poor, poor, _pooooor_ baby!"

Malfoy obviously wasn't used to this sort of teasing and just stood there, a blush rising in his cheeks. While Ron glared at Malfoy for pretending to be hurt, Evanna pretended to be worried for him, and her teasing worked much more effectively.

"Sir," Malfoy called, "sir, I'll need help cutting up these daisy roots, because of my arm — "

"Oh, could I help you?!" Evanna asked, quickly beginning to cut up his daisy roots nicely before anyone could object. "And let me help you skin shrivelfig too, oh please, you poor thing!"

Snape seemed rather taken aback by this too, but said nothing, only scowled. Pansy was looking at Evanna angrily, and Ron kept telling Malfoy that his arm wasn't really hurt, as if nobody else knew though.

"There you are, you poor, poor child. If you need _anything_ else, just ask your old aunt Evanna!" Evanna had a hard time suppressing a grin as she hugged Malfoy tightly, and kissed his forehead, and watched his cheeks go bright red.

"That was the most brilliant thing I've ever witnessed," Daphne whispered, and Evanna winked.

"Evanna," Seamus said, poking her repeatedly on the shoulder. "Did you hear? Sirius Black was sighted near here!"

Evanna dropped her knife, choking on the very air. "What?!"

"Near here?" Ron asked nervously, and he noticed Parvati listening discreetly.

"Apparently a Muggle lady saw him and by the time the Ministry of Magic had been warned and had arrived, he was gone," Seamus said. "Why would he be around here though? You don't think he's coming to Hogwarts, do you?"

Before they could respond, Snape called, "Back to your seat, Finnigan!"

"Thinking of trying to catch Black single-handed, Potter?"

"Oh yes, of course! Someone needs to, and I'd never ask _you_ to do it, Draco, you poor baby, you've been through enough for a lifetime! That beast shouldn't have been so offended by your offensiveness! You're probably scarred for life, you poor, _poor_ — "

"I thought you would've gone after him already, to get revenge," Malfoy interrupted, obviously trying to anger Evanna. Needless to say, his attack was ineffective.

"Oh, and leave you here all alone with all of those terrible Hippogriffs? Not on your life!" Evanna cried, cuddling his arm to her face. "You dear, naive child!"

Malfoy ripped his arm away and turned angrily back to his cauldron. Evanna smirked and hi-fived Ron.

"I would never have thought of that sort of thing, Evanna," Ron said.

"Yeah, well, I decided being mean to him wouldn't be as effective as shocking him into silence," Evanna laughed, ignoring how the blonde glared at her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna decided, contrary to her horrid Potions teacher, Professor Lupin was her favourite teacher. The first thing he did was arrive to his own class late, then he took them away from the classroom, saying their lesson would be practical, and when he caught Peeves sticking gum in a lock, he made the gum shoot up the poltergeist's nose! Plus, Evanna could swear she'd seen him somewhere before.

They entered the staffroom, and Professor Lupin greeted the only person who was inside: Professor Snape. Snape took one look at the group of Gryffindors and scowled. He stood to leave, and Professor Lupin held the door open for him.

"Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear," Snape sneered, and Neville looked down, ashamed.

Professor Lupin simply smiled confidently. "I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation," he said, "and I am sure he will perform it admirably."

"Oh my goodness," Lavender murmured, nudging Evanna, as Snape's expression got angrier. "He has your sort of nice insults, Evanna."

Professor Lupin seemed to hear this, and smiled as he closed the door behind Snape. Evanna smiled back at him and he also looked reminiscent.

"Now, then," said Professor Lupin, beckoning the class toward the end of the room, where there was nothing but an old wardrobe where the teachers kept their spare robes. As Professor Lupin went to stand next to it, the wardrobe gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall.

"Nothing to worry about," said Professor Lupin calmly because a few people had jumped backward in alarm. "There's a Boggart in there."

Evanna remembered learned about a Boggart from a book she had been secretly reading in History of Magic. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, it was called, and she and her friends had made additions and scribbles all through it. She could already see where Professor Lupin was going with this, and she was almost excited.

Her mind came back to the conversation as Professor Lupin asked, "So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a Boggart?"

Hermione put up her hand, and Evanna did too.

"It's a shape-shifter," Hermione said. "It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," said Professor Lupin, and Hermione glowed. "Do you have something to add to that, Evanna?"

"Yes, Boggarts get confused in large groups of people. Right now, it's sitting in there in its natural state, which, I might add, nobody has seen before. So, when you let it out of the closet, which I'm assuming you will do, it won't know what to turn into to scare us the most, unless we, say, line up single file and take turns," Evanna said, and the glare that Hermione gave her was enough to know she was absolutely correct.

Professor Lupin looked at her with a slightly shocked expression, and the class laughed.

"Evanna's really intuitive and perceptive, Professor," Ron explained, "so she can guess a lot of things right, while Hermione's really intelligent because she memorizes books and facts."

"Thank you for that explanation, Ron, that makes a lot of sense now," Professor Lupin laughed. "Evanna basically explained exactly what we're going to be doing. But first I'll have to teach you the charm to counter to the Boggart's effects." He looked at Hermione, who was obviously itching to prove her worth. "Hermione, what is a Boggart's weakness?"

"Laughter. You have to force it to take the form of something that amuses you, that makes you laugh," Hermione, said, as if reading off a textbook.

"Nicely done! Now, the charm is, repeat after me, riddikulus," Professor Lupin said.

"Riddikulus," the class repeated.

"Good, very good. Now, this is where you come in, Neville . . ."

Evanna then realized something that was very important to her; Professor Lupin used the students' first names. In all of the other classes, the teachers were very formal, but Professor Lupin was kind, and made you feel comfortable around him, like you'd known him for years. He was even helping Neville, and letting Neville help him. Evanna smiled to herself at this prospect.

When it got to the point where they all had to envision what scared them the most, Evanna wasn't sure what to think of. Sure, there was Tom Riddle, but she had already defeated him three times, so he somehow didn't seem as scary anymore. It's not like she had an intense fear of much else though . . .

Suddenly, she remembered those hooded demons. Those personifications of depression. Those Dementors. That's what she was most terrified of.

"Everyone ready?" said Professor Lupin.

Evanna jumped back to reality. How did one make a Dementor less terrifying? Maybe she could give it a funny apron and some cooking gloves? Maybe a chef's hat too? Make it look more cheery? Yes, that might work . . .

She watched as each of her friends faced their fears, right before her eyes. She knew that courage was hard, and she was nervous about facing this. Usually when she was in a deadly situation, like the last two times she had faced Tom Riddle, she became rather calm, even stoic. But when the situation wouldn't potentially cost her life, she often didn't control her emotions as well.

Finally, it was her turn. She stepped forwards, but so did Professor Lupin. He finished off the Boggart before she had a chance to try it out.

She tried not to look disappointed as the class filed out. She had wanted to see if she could face her fear, like most of her classmates could. But instead of focusing on that, she smiled and chatted with her friends proudly of their accomplishments.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fred looked at his brother with worry. George was lying face down on his bed, filled to the brim with anxiety. With the month of October came Quidditch practices, mountains of schoolwork, and —

"Hogsmeade weekend!" George had bemoaned, when he saw the schedule.

"Isn't that good?" Fred asked in bemusement.

"No! Evanna can't go, can she?" George sighed.

And that had lead him to today, flopped onto his bed, feeling terrible.

Fred knew that George liked Evanna. _A lot_. He had wanted to ask her out to Hogsmeade, but she couldn't go. Fred kept pushing George to ask her out anyways, sure she'd say yes, but it was only giving George more anxiety, and now Fred felt terrible.

"Georgie, are you okay?" Fred finally asked.

George let out a loud laugh and Fred was stunned.

"It's just, I asked Evanna that once when she was equally dismal, and she told me how stupid the question was," George chuckled, flipping over to lie on his back so that he could look at his twin.

Fred sat on the bed, crossing his legs. "Hey, I'm sorry for pushing you to ask Vanna out. I know you're nervous. But I also know she'd say yes, whether it was to Hogsmeade or just playing a game," he said.

George smiled. "I know. But . . . I've never asked a girl out before. It's incredibly nerve-racking."

"Yeah, I get it."

The pair was silent for a moment, until George lay down again with a frown, saying, "I can't."

"What can't you do?"

Both boys jumped at the voice of none other than Evanna Potter.

"I heard from a somewhat reliable source that you were moping, George," Evanna continued, waving her hand haphazardly. "So I've come to forcefully cheer you up."

Fred let out a laugh, standing to leave the room. "I'll leave him in your capable hands then, Vanna."

She took where Fred had been sitting on the edge of George's bed, flipping her braid over her shoulder. George smiled, sitting up too.

"So . . . by somewhat reliable source, did you mean Lee?" George couldn't help but ask, and Evanna nodded.

"But don't try to change the subject, what's wrong?" Evanna asked, looking at him with a serious expression.

"I'm just a bit overwhelmed by life," George said, truthfully.

"Life is very overwhelming," Evanna hummed in agreement. "But you can definitely get through it. I mean, you're George Weasley! One of the strongest and bravest people I know! I mean, being in Gryffindor, I know quite a few strong and brave people, but you're definitely one of the strongest."

George's cheeks and ears went very red. He had to ask her now. If he didn't do it now, he wouldn't do it ever.

"Evanna," he blurted out, "would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me?"

It was Evanna's turn to become flustered, but she quickly and smoothly responded with, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were asking me out on a date, Weasley."

"I am," George clarified, nervously. "Unless you don't want to!"

"I can't," Evanna said, with a sad smile. "My aunt and uncle didn't sign my form, remember?"

"I . . . I do remember," George sighed. "I just thought . . . I needed to ask you anyways. Sorry, Eva."

"Don't be sorry!" Evanna said hastily. "I would've _loved_ to go to Hogsmeade with you. But I can't. Maybe next year I can get them to sign it," she said hopefully.

George nodded. "Yeah . . ."

"Well," Evanna said, clapping her hands together and standing up, "I must be going. I promised Parvati I would help her with her Transfiguration homework. I don't know why on earth she would want my help, but anyways . . . I'll see you later, George."

George stared after her, and exhaled a small sigh of contentment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ahhh!" Evanna cried, hopping onto Hermione's bed, where she sat with Parvati and Lavender, playing UNO.

"What is it?" Lavender asked, placing a card on the pile. "UNO."

"George asked me out! Kind of," Evanna exclaimed.

The other three girls looked at her in excitement and surprise.

"Kind of?" Hermione asked.

"Well, he asked me to Hogsmeade, and I can't go . . ." Evanna admitted. "But still!"

"Wait, why can't you go to Hogsmeade?" Parvati asked.

"I forgot you two didn't know," Evanna muttered, then raised her voice to address Lavender and Parvati. "Well, my aunt and uncle didn't sign my permission slip, and Prof McG said I couldn't go without a signature."

"That _sucks_!" Lavender exclaimed. "Especially since George asked you _out_! I wish a boy would ask _me_ out . . ."

"Wait, this news does _not_ leave this room, unless I'm the one to tell someone, okay?" Evanna said sternly, leaning forwards and looking at Parvati and Lavender in particular. Lavender nodded profusely and Parvati made the motion of zipping her lips, locking them, and throwing away the key. Evanna leaned back and smiled. "Good. "

"Now tell us more about _George Weasley_ ," Lavender said, grinning devilishly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna hadn't minded not being able to go to Hogsmeade until George had asked her out. Now, it was all she could think about. Her friends all tried to help her, telling her that Hogsmeade honestly wasn't that great, or offering to stay behind with her, but she told them she was fine, and she wanted them to go have fun.

On Halloween, as everyone began to leave for the village, George leant against a wall with Evanna, trying to convince her to let him stay with her.

"No, George! You go have fun with Fred and Lee, and all of those guys! Honestly, I'll be alright! I'm probably going to hang out with Ginny and her friends, okay?" Evanna said, pushing him towards Fred and Lee, who were waiting patiently for him. She hesitated, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, before pushing him on his way again. "Go! Have fun!"

George gingerly touched to spot where her lips had been, grinning stupidly, as he, Fred, and Lee went off towards the village. Evanna smirked, going to join her own younger friends.

"Hey guys, thanks for letting me hang out with you," Evanna said, looking at the small group of girls.

"It's no problem, thanks for introducing us to Astoria," Ginny said, and Astoria blushed.

Evanna, whom had yet to meet Ginny's friend Luna, was immediately in love with the whimsical blonde. Luna was, what Evanna liked to describe as, the embodiment of an artist. Luna wore whatever she liked, she spoke her mind, and decided what was real or not in her world. Evanna was also incredibly excited when she found out that Luna loved to paint.

"I'm an artist too!" Evanna exclaimed. "I draw instead of paint though."

"Oh, that's lovely," Luna said, and Evanna immediately thought her voice sounded like how cotton candy tasted. "Would you like to play a game?"

"What game should we play?" Astoria asked.

"How about some Never Can Tell games!" Ginny exclaimed. "Evanna and I know a bunch!"

"What are Never Can Tell games?" Astoria asked.

"They're games where you have to figure out the trick to win," Evanna explained. "Let's start with something simple, I'm going to Hogwarts and I'm bringing an elephant. Who wants to come with me?"

"Why would you bring an elephant to Hogwarts?" Luna asked.

"It's part of the game, Luna," Ginny said. "Oh, Evanna, could I bring a goat?"

"Sure, you can come," Evanna said. "Anyone else want to come with me?"

"Uh, could I bring a dog?" Astoria asked.

"No, you can't come," Ginny said.

"Darn it, I thought it was going to be all animals," Astoria sighed.

"No, because I'm also bringing an encyclopedia," Evanna giggled. "And Ginny should bring some grapes."

"Could I bring a light?" Luna offered.

"Sure, you could come, Luna," Ginny laughed, then, seeing Astoria's confused and frustrated face, she added, "Astoria, we really need an armchair, could you bring one? Or maybe you could bring an armadillo!"

"First letter of our names!" Astoria gasped excitedly.

"Ding ding ding! Winner!" Evanna laughed. "You could do all sorts of different patterns with that game! But some games have certain things you need to figure out. Hmm, does anyone have nine books I could borrow?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remus Lupin was surprised to find a somewhat large group of people sitting in a circle playing some sort of game. He stood by to listen.

Evanna Potter was saying a sort of rhyme. "The Moon is round, made of green cheese, has two eyes, a nose, and a smile you can see. Does anyone have a premonition?"

"What are you all doing?" Remus asked, and very suddenly, a few people's hands shot in the air.

Evanna smirked, giving Remus a wink that reminded him of her father. "Astoria, I saw your hand first." Astoria Greengrass covered her eyes with her hands and Evanna began pointing to people around the circle. "Is this the person I'm thinking of?"

"No," Astoria replied, and Evanna moved her finger to point at someone else.

"How about this person?"

"No."

"This person?"

"Nope."

"That person?"

"No way! Come on, Evanna!"

"Okay, fine." Evanna pointed at Remus. "Who am I pointing at?"

"Professor Lupin!" Astoria exclaimed, opening her eyes and grinning at the shocked teacher.

"What . . . what are you all doing?" Remus asked again weakly. The group laughed.

"Evanna's taught us a fun Never Can Tell game!" one boy, Colin Creevey, piped up. "I still haven't figured out the trick yet though . . ."

"You'll get it eventually, Colin!" Ginny Weasley encouraged him.

"Would you like to play with us, Professor? I'm sure you'll figure it out," Luna Lovegood offered.

"Well . . ." Remus looked around at the group. Perhaps he should, if not to just make sure they had teacher supervision. "Alright," he conceded.

"Awesome!" Evanna grinned. "Now, the moon is round . . ."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna was in her dorm room just before the Halloween feast would begin, putting away all of the things Ron, Hermione, and the twins had bought for her, when she found out why Professor Lupin looked familiar to her. She had just been making space for some of the pranking things Fred and George had gotten her, when she accidentally knocked over the scrapbook Hagrid had given her in her first year. It was a photo album of pictures of her parents and their friends filling it, plus pictures of her and her friends that she had added over the past year or so.

The book had opened to a picture of her parents at their wedding with some of their friends, and when she picked it up, she noticed a very familiar face. She ran her finger along the names listed on the bottom of the page until she came across the one she was looking for.

"Remus Lupin," she mouthed, her eyes flitting back up to his face.

So he had known her parents. He had been friends with them even. She smiled, but only until she saw another recognizable name that made her heart stop.

"Sirius Black."

Evanna stared at the man's handsome face in the picture. He was smiling with his arms looped around Remus and her father, and he didn't look like the type of person who would become a mass murderer. She swallowed nervously, looking again at Remus Lupin's face. She would have to ask him about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I LOVED EVERY ASPECT OF THIS CHAPTER! AHHH! I love how Evanna can make fun of Draco without actually making fun of him, I love how she can imagine Dementors in a funny way, I love how George loves her and how she loves him, I LOVE Never Can Tell games, and I love it all! I hope you loved it too!
> 
> I hope you all understood the references to the Never Can Tell games. I references the 'I'm going camping and I'm bringing...' one and 'The Moon is Round' and I also made a reference to 'Nine Books'! I love those ones, and I also love 'Johnny Whoop' 'Does my boat float/draw the boat' and 'The Spirit is Moving' (which I'll admit I haven't figured out the trick to get, but I will one day!) Anyone else love those sorts of games?
> 
> Please review! I love you! ~Jayce


	44. Dementors on the Quidditch Pitch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 44: Dementors on the Quidditch Pitch
> 
> A/N: WHOA GUYS LOOK HOW FAST YOU GOT A NEW CHAPTER I AM ON A ROLL!
> 
> Also, probably the next chapter will come out soon too, but idk about the rest, I mean my birthday is coming up in February (Feb. 14 to be exact) and I'm turning 16 and it's pretty crazy? Wow? I used to think I'd automatically become like those Disney show teenagers when I hit the age, but no, I feel exactly the same, just with more anxiety.
> 
> AND THEN IN MARCH I'M GOING TO A TOBYMAC CONCERT WITH MY FRIEND ALYSSA YAAAAAAY! I'M SO INCREDIBLY EXCITED IT'S GONNA BE GREAT!
> 
> Anyways, hope you guys like this chapter! Love ya!

Evanna skidded around the corner, running at full speed down the corridors. She could hear a couple people coming after her, but she didn't care. She skidded to a stop at Professor Lupin's office, pounding on the door.

"Professor Lupin! Professor!" she cried, hitting the door as hard as she could with her fists. Finally, she let out a final desperate yell of, "Remus!"

The door opened and Remus Lupin stared down at her in shock. "Evanna? What in the world — ? You should be heading to the Great Hall."

"No, I need to talk to you! It's important!" Evanna said, glancing behind her to where Ron, Hermione, Fred, and George were just turning the corner.

"I'm sure it can wait, go downstairs with your friends — "

"It's about Sirius Black!"

Remus closed his mouth into a thin frown. He glanced at the other students, who were just running up behind Evanna, panting. "Go," he said, pointing back down the hall. "Evanna will be with you momentarily."

"But — "

"Go," Remus ordered sternly, ushering Evanna into his office and closing the door behind him. He could hear Evanna's friends muttering some protests, but obeying his instructions. He sighed, turning to his best friend's daughter, who had already sat down in one of his armchairs, and was looking up at him expectantly and nervously. He sat across from her. "Well? What would you like to share?"

"More like what I'd like _you_ to share," Evanna said, pulling an album out from under her arm, which Remus hadn't previously realized she was carrying. He had a sharp intake of breath when he saw that it was mostly filled with pictures of James and Lily. Evanna merely glanced up at his gasp, then flipped the book to show him a wedding picture. It was of himself, James, Lily, Peter, and Sirius.

"You knew him," Evanna said plainly.

"Yes, I knew James — "

"No," Evanna corrected, "Sirius Black."

Remus sighed reluctantly. "Yes, I did."

"He tried to break into the Gryffindor common room tonight," Evanna said, as if Remus wasn't aware of this fact.

"Yes, I know."

"People don't know how he got into the castle."

"Well, if you think that _I_ know — "

"No, I'd never _accuse_ you, Professor, but it's just that it doesn't make sense how on earth he would get in. You can't apparate into Hogwarts, there are Dementors posted around the whole grounds, and we'd see him get in if he flew."

"If you're not accusing me, then why did you come here?" Remus asked.

"I'm not worried about how he got in, but why," Evanna explained. "I mean, I get that I defeated his evil master or whatever, but . . . I don't know, it seems like a lot of trouble to go through to kill one girl, who, I might add, already killed Voldemort a total of three times. Unless he has an ulterior motive. I was wondering if you might know any."

Remus was taken aback. He knew Evanna was smart and incredibly deductive, but this was almost uncanny.

"I do not know any ulterior motives he might have had," Remus answered truthfully. "But if I think of any, you'll be the first to know."

Evanna sighed, but gave him a small smile. "No need to humour me, Professor. You won't let me know. You don't want me going after Sirius. Nobody does, and I guess they have their reasons. But I wouldn't dare go after him on _purpose_ ; trouble just has a knack for following me around. All I want to do is keep my friends safe."

"Especially George Weasley, yes?" Evanna went red and Remus chuckled. "You're not the only perceptive one around here, Evanna. But I think it would be best if you just went to bed. I have no doubt that your friends will be up waiting."

Evanna nodded, smiling slightly. "I hope we can talk again, Professor. Under more pleasant circumstances."

"I would enjoy that, Evanna. Goodnight," Remus said, watching as the small redhead left his office, closing the door behind her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

People were starting to trail Evanna around everywhere. Mostly teachers and Percy Weasley, but it still got on her nerves. She could handle herself fine, she wasn't that short!

Many of them would start out discreetly, but as soon as Evanna noticed, they would find some reason to speak with her. And since Evanna was almost nowhere without friends, they were equally as annoyed.

"Why can't they go bother someone else?" Seamus muttered. "If anyone is capable of taking care of herself, it's Evanna."

"Agreed," Dean sighed, glaring surreptitiously back at Professor Flitwick, who was following them a few paces back.

"Don't get too upset, or they'll just do it more," Evanna said calmly, walking with her back straight and wearing her perfect poker face. "They can't follow me around forever."

"Why do you say that?" Dean asked.

Evanna gestured mischievously to the girls' bathroom. "Just knock on the door once he's gone."

"That could take hours!" Seamus complained. "I thought you were going to show us some cool moves on your broom!"

"Don't you forget I have friends everywhere," Evanna winked, quickly heading into the bathroom.

A few minutes later, Luna Lovegood came up, asking Flitwick to help her with her Charms homework. Dean also heard her say something about a Nargle, but he must've just been hearing things. Flitwick reluctantly followed the girl away, and Seamus knocked on the bathroom door.

Evanna popped her head out with a huge grin. "See? That didn't take so long. Now let's get out of here before someone else comes along."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm so sorry I'm late, Profes — Oh my Godric, I think I'm in the wrong room," Evanna said, her words stringing together out of embarrassment, about to turn to leave.

"This lesson began ten minutes ago, Potter, so I think we'll make it ten points from Gryffindor. Sit down."

Evanna moved to sit down, still taken aback that Snape stood in front of the class instead of Remus Lupin. "If you don't mind my asking, where's Professor Lupin?"

"I do mind your asking, and Lupin is too sick to teach today. Now sit down, or five more points from Gryffindor," Snape said, watching closely as Evanna sat down beside Hermione and Ron, as if trying to find something more she could do wrong.

Through the whole class, Evanna glared at Snape. Now usually, she would put on her poker face, to let him know he wasn't getting to her, but this was completely different. He _was_ getting to her, more than he usually got to her, and she was just about having enough of it. But she couldn't act out on it, she couldn't show let him have the satisfaction of giving her detention, especially with the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff Quidditch game coming up . . .

"Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't even taught you the basic distinction between — "

"We told you," Parvati said bravely, "we haven't got as far as werewolves yet, we're still on — "

"Silence!" snarled Snape. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognize a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are . . ."

"Please, sir," said Hermione, whose hand was still in the air, "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf — "

"That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Granger," said Snape coolly. "Five more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all."

Hermione looked down, tears rolling silently down her cheeks. Evanna immediately pulled her into a hug, saying nothing, but thinking some very rude things about their teacher of the day. Then Ron burst out with something that Evanna was sure everyone had been thinking.

"You asked us a question and she knows the answer! Why ask if you don't want to be told?"

"Detention, Weasley," Snape said silkily, his face very close to Ron's. "And if I ever hear you criticize the way I teach a class again, you will be very sorry indeed."

Nobody said anything else for the rest of the class. Not a single word. They silently listened to Snape, never speaking out of turn. The only noise other than Snape was Hermione's occasional sniffles, which Evanna was sure Snape almost made her lose points for too. Then, once class had finished and Snape had assigned a ridiculous homework assignment, they filtered out of the classroom without a word.

Only once the last person had left the class and closed the door behind them, did everyone explode all at once.

"Why would anyone let Snape take over for Lupin?!"

"Werewolves?! Why would a third-year class even need to know about werewolves?!"

"He just wants to insult us and look for any way he can take away points!"

Evanna couldn't help but agree with her friends, as she hugged Hermione consolingly. Snape needed to stick to Potions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hello!"

Cedric Diggory was surprised that the young Gryffindor Seeker was talking to him. He had overheard how those Weasley twins thought of him, and considering how close they were with Evanna Potter, he had just assumed that she would've taken their side.

"Hello," he replied, glancing at the enchanted ceiling. "Unfortunate weather for a Quidditch match, isn't it?"

"Yes," Evanna said, sliding into the seat next to him. "You're Cedric, right? Cedric Diggory?"

Cedric nodded. "And you're Evanna Potter."

Evanna held out her hand to shake. "Pleased to meet you."

Cedric eyed her hand warily, but shook it. "Pleased to meet you too."

Evanna raised an eyebrow and said, "You're wondering why I'm being so nice while most of my team thinks that we shouldn't talk with people from other teams."

"Er, yeah, actually," Cedric said in surprise.

"Well, I prefer friends rather than foes," Evanna said. "The best way to defeat your enemy is to make him your friend you know."

"Oh. Yeah, I guess," Cedric said, still not quite sure of why Evanna had struck up conversation with him.

"I think I should be going," Evanna said, glancing back towards the Gryffindor table, where Oliver Wood was glaring at her. "But I wish you luck today. It's gonna be fun!"

"Uh, yeah. Bye!" Cedric called, feeling somewhat more confident in today's game. Perhaps it was Evanna's wish for him to have luck, or her contagiously chipper morale, but he felt like maybe Hufflepuff had a shot against Gryffindor this year.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_"Not Evanna, not Evanna, please not Evanna!"_

_"Stand aside, you silly girl . . . stand aside, now . . ."_

_"Not Evanna, please no, take me, kill me instead — "_

_"Not Evanna! Please . . . have mercy . . . have mercy . . . "_

_A shrill voice was laughing . . . It was a familiar laugh . . . And a woman, a woman was screaming . . . Dying? Evanna had to do something . . ._

". . . anna? Evan . . . you . . . hear me?"

There was a voice speaking directly to her now . . . It was fading in and out, but she recognized it . . .

"I have never been so glad that the ground was muddy in my life."

"Imagine what would've happened to her if it hadn't been as soft . . ."

"I'd rather not imagine that, thank you."

Now there were more voices, all of them people she knew . . .

"That was the scariest moment of my life."

"Scarier than the Mountain Troll in first year? Or the Basilisk in second?"

"Ugh, can't I be scared in peace, Hermione?"

Ron and Hermione . . . Evanna forced her eyes open, feeling like she had just been beaten by that Whomping Willow from second year. The whole Quidditch team, plus Ron and Hermione, surrounded her bed in the Hospital Wing. The whole team was soaked in mud, and Ron and Hermione were soaked in water. Evanna saw that she was covered in mud too.

"Vanna!" exclaimed Fred, and he, George, Hermione, and Ron immediately crushed the girl in a hug. "How're you feeling?"

"I can't remember, what happened?" Evanna asked, sitting up slowly.

"You fell off," said Fred. "Must've been — what — fifty feet?"

"We thought you'd died," said Alicia, who was shaking.

"But the match," asked Evanna. "What happened? Wait, no, let me guess — we lost. Cedric probably got the Snitch while I was falling."

"Yeah," said George, gloomily. "Just after you fell. He didn't realize what had happened. When he looked back and saw you on the ground, he tried to call it off. Wanted a rematch. But they won fair and square . . . even Wood admits it."

"Where is Wood?" Evanna asked, suddenly realizing he wasn't there.

"Still in the showers," said Fred. "We think he's trying to drown himself."

"Oh," Evanna said sadly.

"What happened out there anyways?" Fred asked, trying not to sound accusatory. "It'll take a miracle for us to still have a chance at the cup . . ."

"Dementors happened," Evanna said angrily, suddenly remembering it. "They were there and I could hear — " She stopped suddenly. She wasn't about to admit to hearing voices, especially after last year's Basilisk incident.

"Well, we'll come back later, Evanna," Angelina said, and each of the three Chasers gave their Seeker a hug before leaving her with her best friends.

"Oh yeah, what happened with my broom? Did someone catch it?" Evanna asked, not noticing how all of her friends exchanged worried glances.

"Er, I think we'll be going too, Eva," George said, grabbing Fred's arm and pulling him out of the room. "We have something we need to discuss . . . We'll come back later bye!"

"Okay then," Evanna shrugged, then turned back to Ron and Hermione. "So?"

"Well . . ." Hermione started, twirling her hands nervously. "It-It was blown away after you fell and . . ."

"It hit the Whomping Willow," Ron said, just as nervous as Hermione was. "And, well . . ." He gestured sadly to a bag by Hermione's feet, which she dumped onto the foot of Evanna's bed.

Evanna stared desolately at the bits and pieces of her Nimbus Two Thousand, wishing she didn't have such a strong reaction to Dementors.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I know you didn't want to deliver the news about her broom to Evanna, but this is ridiculous," Fred complained, as George pulled him into an empty classroom a ways from the Hospital Wing.

"No, I really do need to talk with you about something," George said, fidgeting nervously. "I was thinking . . . Well, I was thinking we should give Evanna the Marauder's Map!"

Fred stared at his brother. "The Marauder's Map?"

"Yeah, don't you think it would help her a lot more than it would us?" George insisted. "I mean, she's always getting into crazy situations and she could probably use — "

"Are you sure this has nothing to do with you wanting to take her out to Hogsmeade?" Fred asked with a smirk. George went red.

"Okay, yes, that too. But you know as well as I do that Evanna would _love_ Hogsmeade! And wouldn't you love to show her Zonko's?"

"Ah, you're right," Fred sighed. "We're really good at sneaking around, even without the map anyways. So you want to just go give it to her now?"

"No, before the next Hogsmeade weekend," George said. "Surprise her with it."

"Alright," Fred conceded. "But make sure this is worth it, Forge. Make sure she loves that date you take her on."

"I'll try my best, Gred," George grinned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE GEORGE AND EVANNA IN HOGSMEADE ON THEIR FIRST DATE I'M SO EXCITED OH MY GOSH~!
> 
> Please review~! ~Jayce


	45. A Date with a Side of Distress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 45: A Date with a Side of Distress
> 
> A/N: YAY EVANNA AND GEORGE GO ON A DATE IN THIS CHAPTER! and she also gets some news that will change her life forever but GEORGVANNA! Haha I am such a fangirl of my own story it's hilarious XD Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Evanna hadn't been expecting anything different on their next Hogsmeade weekend. She had decided to do some drawing and chill out by herself, because sometimes even she got exhausted when surrounded by people. Besides, Professor Lupin had offered to teach her how to ward off Dementors, so she had something to look forward to later. But before she could relax at all, she was grabbed by Fred and George and pulled into an empty classroom by the statue of the humpbacked, one-eyed witch.

"Why did you kidnap me? I thought I told you I'd be fine on my own, George," Evanna said, raising an eyebrow at the boys.

"We've decided to present you with this early Christmas present," George said.

When Fred placed an old, blank parchment on the table, Evanna stared at them. "I have my own sketchbook you know. With much nicer paper I might add."

"This isn't for art!" Fred gasped. "This, Evanna, is the secret to our success."

"Success? In what?"

"You wound me!"

"This is how we always follow you without you knowing," George said, tapping the parchment excitedly.

"If this turns out to be some wizard version of the ouija board, I'm out," Evanna said, eyeing the paper suspiciously.

"What? No, no! I have no clue what that is, but no," George reassured her. "See, when we were in our first year — young, carefree, innocent — "

Evanna let out a snort. "Innocent? Don't kid yourselves."

"Okay, okay, more innocent than we are now, anyways — we got into a spot of bother with Filch."

"We let off a Dungbomb in the corridor and it upset him for some reason — "

"So he hauled us off to his office and started threatening us with the usual — "

" — detention — "

" — disembowelment — "

" — and we couldn't help noticing a drawer in one of his filing cabinets marked Confiscated and Highly Dangerous."

"George caused a diversion by dropping another Dungbomb, I whipped the drawer open, and grabbed — this."

"It's not as bad as it sounds, you know," said George. "We don't reckon Filch ever found out how to work it. He probably suspected what it was, though, or he wouldn't have confiscated it."

"And you know how to work it?" Evanna asked, deciding to humour them.

"Oh yes," said Fred, smirking. "This little beauty's taught us more than all the teachers in this school."

"Then show me," Evanna demanded, expecting them to admit they were just winding her up.

But George took out his wand, touched the parchment lightly, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

And at once, thin ink lines began to spread like a spider's web from the point that George's wand had touched. They joined each other, they crisscrossed, they fanned into every corner of the parchment; then words began to blossom across the top, great, curly green words, that proclaimed:

_Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs_  
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers  
are proud to present  
THE MARAUDER'S MAP 

"This is wicked," Evanna murmured, examining the map in awe. There were tons of little dots with little names milling about, exactly where they were in real life. Plus there were a dozen secret passages she didn't know about. "Wait," she said suddenly, "so this is how you two are always following me around?"

"Let's not get hung up on the past," Fred said quickly, pointing out the different secret passages instead. "Most of them lead right into Hogsmeade. There are seven in all. Now, Filch knows about these four" — he pointed them out — "but we're sure we're the only ones who know about these. Don't bother with the one behind the mirror on the fourth floor. We used it until last winter, but it's caved in — completely blocked. And we don't reckon anyone's ever used this one, because the Whomping Willow's planted right over the entrance. But this one here, this one leads right into the cellar of Honeydukes. We've used it loads of times. And as you might've noticed, the entrance is right outside this room, through that one-eyed old crone's hump."

"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," sighed George, patting the heading of the map. "We owe them so much."

"Noble men, working tirelessly to help a new generation of lawbreakers," said Fred solemnly.

"Right," said George briskly. "Don't forget to wipe it after you've used it — "

" — or anyone can read it," Fred said warningly.

"Just tap it again and say, 'Mischief managed!' And it'll go blank."

"You two are _amazing_!" Evanna cried, kissing them each on the cheek before leaning forward to examine the map more closely.

"See you in Hogsmeade then!" Fred called, leaving the room, and also leaving George and Evanna alone.

"Evanna," George said nonchalantly, "I was wondering if you'd like to go on that date I asked you about before."

Evanna spun to face George, smiling from ear to ear. "Yes! I'd love that!"

George grinned too. "So, I'll meet you in Honeyduke's then."

"Yeah, definitely," Evanna winked, before gathering up the map and heading to the one-eyed witch passage before she could get caught.

George sighed with contentment, quickly darting away to catch up with his twin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What took you, Vanna dearest?" Fred asked, pretending to be his twin. Evanna rolled her eyes.

"I had to tell Ron and Hermione, now didn't I? Anyways, where's George?" Evanna asked, glancing around.

"You wound me, woman! Can't you _tell_ I'm George?"

"I can _tell_ you're Fred, now tell where your twin brother is, so that he can sweep me off my feet," Evanna said, only joking slightly. She was actually really excited about this date.

Suddenly, strong arms grabbed her from behind, swinging her around, right off her feet. "George! This isn't exactly what I meant!" she laughed, struggling against his grip.

George set her down and grinned down at her. "Ready?"

Evanna linked her fingers through George's, smiling up at him. "Yeah, definitely."

"We're going to try and be careful that no teachers see you out here," George said, as they began to traipse through the snow.

"Try _to_ ," Evanna corrected fondly.

"Nope, because we're going to try _and_ we're going to do it," George grinned, nudging her with his shoulder.

Evanna giggled, nudging him back playfully. "So? Where are you taking me first?"

"I was thinking of checking out the Shrieking Shack. It's supposed to be haunted," George offered.

"Very romantic," Evanna said dryly, and when George went red and began to stutter about not having to go, Evanna added hastily, "George, I was kidding, it's okay. I'd love to see it! I mean, hauntings are pretty mysterious and I love mystery."

"I thought you would," George said, attempting to sound confident. Evanna hadn't really realized how much this meant to him, and it meant a lot to her too.

When they reached the outskirts of the Shrieking Shack's property, Evanna went to stand on the wooden fence that surrounded it, peering through the flurry of snow and trying to spot anything mysterious. She only succeed in becoming even colder than she had previously been. She should've brought a coat, honestly!

She must've been visibly shivering, because she felt George drape his own coat around her shoulders. It was much too large for her, but it was incredibly warm. "George, you don't have to — "

"Nonsense," George said, chivalrously. "I can't let my fair maiden freeze, now can I?"

"Ah, thank you, my brave knight!" Evanna played along, pulling the coat tighter around her shoulders, and batting her eyelashes lovingly.

George laughed and swept her up in his arms, spinning her around for the second time that day.

"Evanna?"

Evanna gasped, and George almost dropped her. He set her down and she turned to look over to where Parvati stood, staring at them in surprise.

"Oh, hey Parvati," Evanna said, pushing her hair out of her face nervously.

Parvati narrowed her eyes. "I thought you couldn't go to Hogsmeade."

"Dammit!" Evanna cried, throwing her arms up in exasperation. "I shouldn't have told you that! You're too perceptive, why are all my friends so perceptive?"

"Parvati, you won't tell anyone that Evanna snuck out here, will you?" George asked, anxiously.

"Well, a couple people have already noticed her, they just didn't know she wasn't supposed to be here," Parvati admitted. "I mean, she is kind of hard to miss."

Evanna looked at her bright red hair in its signature messy braid. "Oh. Right." She calmly tucked her hair into the coat George had lent her. "Is this a bit better?"

"Eh," Parvati said, waving her hand to signify it was so-so. "Your hair's too red. Nearly no one else has hair that red."

Evanna pulled the hood over her head, and she had to awkwardly keep pushing it up so that she could actually see. Then, just to be safe, she zipped it up to the top. She spun around, looking at her friend as if to say, "How bout now?"

"Yeah, I guess," Parvati said with a shrug. "But you owe me one, Evanna."

Evanna grinned, giving the girl a quick hug. "You're the best, Parv!"

"I know," Parvati sighed, rolling her eyes fondly and walking back towards the village.

"You have great friends, Eva," George said, wrapping his arm around the girl's shoulder.

"Yeah, they're all pretty fantastic," Evanna said, leaning closer to George. "Even that George Weasley."

"Oh, even him?" George joked along.

"Even him," Evanna said with a smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fred had met up with Ron and Hermione at the Three Broomsticks later that day, and they eagerly pressed him for information on George and Evanna.

"So? How's their date going?" Ron asked, leaning forward with interest.

"What? You think I follow them around?" Fred retorted. "I don't know their every move! But, knowing them as well as I do, I would imagine it's going well."

Hermione grinned. "I'm glad, they've been pining over each other for ages! It was so obvious!"

"Well, this calls for celebration!" Fred exclaimed, standing up. "Allow me to buy drinks for us!"

"Oh, you don't need to do that — "

"Hermione, come on," Fred insisted. "We must've reached the 'best friend' point with how much all of us hang out together, let me buy you a butterbeer! Oh, calm down, Ron, I'll buy you one too. Be back in a moment!"

Hermione, though she didn't want Fred spending his money on her, did smile slightly. But in the boy's absence, she and Ron noticed some familiar faces, discussing a familiar topic. When Fred returned, he was immediately shushed so they could eavesdrop on the conversation of Sirius Black.

"You say you remember him at Hogwarts, Rosmerta," murmured Professor McGonagall. "Do you remember who his best friend was?"

"Naturally," said Madam Rosmerta, with a small laugh. "Never saw one without the other, did you? The number of times I had them in here — ooh, they used to make me laugh. Quite the double act, Sirius Black and James Potter!"

Ron, Fred, and Hermione all exchanged horrified glances; they, unlike Evanna, hadn't know that Sirius Black and James Potter had known each other.

"Precisely," said Professor McGonagall. "Black and Potter. Ringleaders of their little gang. Both very bright, of course — exceptionally bright, in fact — but I don't think we've ever had such a pair of troublemakers — "

"I dunno," chuckled Hagrid. "Fred and George Weasley could give 'em a run fer their money."

Fred smiled with pride at this statement.

"You'd have thought Black and Potter were brothers!" chimed in Professor Flitwick. "Inseparable!"

"Of course they were," said Fudge. "Potter trusted Black beyond all his other friends. Nothing changed when they left school. Black was best man when James married Lily. Then they named him godfather to Evanna. Evanna has no idea, of course. You can imagine how the idea would torment her."

Hermione let out a gasp, and Ron covered her mouth with his hand, though he was shocked as well.

"Because Black turned out to be in league with You-Know-Who?" whispered Madam Rosmerta.

"Worse even than that, m'dear . . ." Fudge dropped his voice and proceeded in a sort of low rumble. "Not many people are aware that the Potters knew You-Know-Who was after them. Dumbledore, who was of course working tirelessly against You-Know-Who, had a number of useful spies. One of them tipped him off, and he alerted James and Lily at once. He advised them to go into hiding. Well, of course, You-Know-Who wasn't an easy person to hide from. Dumbledore told them that their best chance was the Fidelius Charm."

"Fidelius Charm!" Hermione gasped quietly.

"What _is_ the Fidelius Charm, Hermione?" Ron asked in a hushed voice.

"It's an immensely complex spell," Hermione explained. "But, in Layman's Terms, you can give someone information, like a location for example, and then no one will be able to find the location, unless the Secret Keeper tells them. But there's a catch," Hermione swallowed nervously, "the information can't be tortured out of the person. They must tell it of their own free will."

Fred looked over the conversing adults. That meant, if Black really was the Secret Keeper . . . It would've been his choice to tell You-Know-Who.

The trio continued to listen intently to the conversation, almost scared with the amount of information they were learning.

After a while, Madam Rosmerta said with some satisfaction, "But he didn't manage to disappear, did he? The Ministry of Magic caught up with him next day!"

"Alas, if only we had," said Fudge bitterly. "It was not we who found him. It was little Peter Pettigrew — another of the Potters' friends. Maddened by grief, no doubt, and knowing that Black had been the Potters' Secret-Keeper, he went after Black himself."

"Pettigrew . . . that fat little boy who was always tagging around after them at Hogwarts?" said Madam Rosmerta.

"Hero-worshipped Black and Potter," said Professor McGonagall. "Never quite in their league, talent-wise. I was often rather sharp with him. You can imagine how I — how I regret that now . . ." She sounded as though she had a sudden head cold.

"There, now, Minerva," said Fudge kindly, "Pettigrew died a hero's death. Eyewitnesses — Muggles, of course, we wiped their memories later — told us how Pettigrew cornered Black. They say he was sobbing, 'Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?' And then he went for his wand. Well, of course, Black was quicker. Blew Pettigrew to smithereens . . ."

The terrified trio had heard enough. They quickly slipped out of the pub and ran back towards the castle to tell Evanna.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Evanna and George returned to Hogwarts a bit earlier than the most of the other students. George had offered to join Evanna down the secret passageway, and she accepted his offer, mostly because it was quite dark in that passage and she wasn't very fond of the dark.

They had a wonderful time on their date, though they mostly browsed through shops and talked over Butterbeer (which, in Evanna's humble opinion, was _heaven_ ), and didn't do anything stereotypically romantic. They just enjoyed being in each other's company, while getting used to the idea that they were something more than friends now. Though they liked the prospect of considering each other girlfriend and boyfriend, it felt weird after being platonic friends for so long (even though they had each harboured secret crushes on the other).

When they had returned to the empty Gryffindor common room, Evanna got out her sketchbook, and George just watched her draw. He admired her skill, and he admired her creativity. He loved her facial expressions as she drew; her concentration, her joy, her disappointment, her frustration, her relief.

"Evanna!" Ron and Hermione had burst into the common room, with Fred just behind them.

"What's wrong?" Evanna asked, standing up and jumping over a couch to meet her friends. They looked worried, and so she was worried too.

"We overheard some teachers and Rosmerta and the Minister talking," Hermione gulped, "about Sirius Black."

"Oh, pray tell," Evanna said, her ears perking up.

"Well, I don't think you'll necessarily _like_ this news . . ." Ron said anxiously.

"Tell me, tell me, tell me!" Evanna exclaimed, bouncing on her toes like an excited child.

"Well, apparently, Sirius Black, well . . . He was best friends with your father," Ron said.

"Oh, I knew that," Evanna waved her hand dismissively. "He was also best friends with Remus — excuse me, Professor Lupin. Anything more interesting?"

"He killed someone named Peter Pettigrew," Fred said. "Apparently another friend of your dad's."

"Well, if he's truly a follower of Tom Riddle, that's to be expected, isn't it?" Evanna said matter-of-factly.

"He was your parents' Secret Keeper too," Hermione said with a sniff, obviously a bit emotional. "Basically, he sold out your parents to You-Know-Who. If he hadn't done that, they'd still be — still be alive . . ."

Evanna swallowed stiffly. "Okay," she said as calmly as she could. "Okay. Any other soul-shattered news?"

They exchanged glances worriedly.

"What? What is it?" Evanna demanded. "Tell me." When they said nothing, she yelled, "Tell me!"

"He's your godfather," Fred said finally, his voice cracking slightly.

Evanna didn't speak for a few minutes. She didn't really do anything, she just sort of stared into nothingness, and they could see her processing this new information. She just stood there, wide-eyed and stiff, almost inanimate.

George hesitantly put his hand on her shoulder. "Eva?"

Evanna nodded, swallowing. "Yeah," she said, her voice breaking. "Yeah, okay. Sure. Give Evanna all the crazy. Okay. That's fine. Sirius Black is my godfather. And Tom Riddle's my cousin, right?" She let out a watery laugh. "I just need — I just need a few minutes . . . hours . . . days . . ."

They could see the tears rapidly welling up in her eyes, and she ran up to her dorm before anyone could stop her. George looked like he might run after her, but Hermione stopped him.

"She just needs to be alone for a while, George. I'm sure she'll come around. I mean, this is Evanna Potter we're talking about," Hermione said, through a voice laced with uncertainty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: YAY! DATE! Also, I have plans for the whole "you owe me one Evanna" part with Parvati, don't worry. And no, Evanna's not going crazy, she's just taken aback (doesn't happen often with this girl).
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	46. The Firebolt with No Note

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 46: The Firebolt with No Note
> 
> A/N: Yay! Another chapter! And it's almost my birthday! Four more days! February 14! On Valentine's Day I'll be SIXTEEN YEARS OLD WOW THAT'S CRAZY LIKE IT SOUNDS LIKE A CRAZY AGE LIKE SWEET SIXTEEN
> 
> Anyways... I hope you like this chapter! It's mostly just small scenes that are cute or funny or both, but I like it.

Fred was surprised when Evanna came down the stairs looking _terrible_. The bags under her eyes were huge and her skin was sickly pale. She kept rubbing her eyes exhaustedly and didn't seem quite awake yet.

"You look terrible," Fred admitted, watching as she stumbled towards him.

"Is that how you talk to your lady, Weasley?" Evanna yawned.

"Evanna, I'm not George," Fred said, with worry in his voice, "and I'm not kidding. Are you alright?"

"Sorry," Evanna sighed, pushing her palms against her eyelids. "I'm fine, just tired. Didn't get much sleep last night."

"You went to bed before any of us. You skipped dinner," Fred pointed out.

"I . . . must've woken up at midnight or something and couldn't fall asleep for a long time afterwards," Evanna said, and Fred was absolutely shocked that she was lying, _and_ how easily he could see through her.

"Evanna, tell me the truth," Fred said, grabbing her shoulders to show he was serious. "I'm sorry that I had to tell you that . . . _news_ , but I _had_ to tell you. You didn't stay up because of me, did you?"

Evanna looked him directly in the eyes and said firmly, "No. It's not because of you, Fred. I'm sorry that I overreacted last night, but I thought over it and I'm fine. Now, where is everyone?"

Fred sighed, knowing the matter had been closed. "Downstairs, eating lunch still, I presume. I just came up to see if you wanted to join us, which I'm assuming you do."

"Yeah. Yeah, I guess I could go for lunch," Evanna shrugged, trying to look more cheery for Fred's sake, but she also know that he could see right through her act.

Nevertheless, the duo headed downstairs together, going to sit with Ron, Hermione, and George. There weren't many others around, as nobody really wanted to spend their holiday around Dementors. But Evanna was grateful nonetheless that her friends stuck around for her. She knew the Weasleys in particular had the option of going back to their warm cozy Burrow and had denied that simply for her. She gave George a genuine smile as she sat next to him.

"Morning, Eva," George said quietly. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine."

"No, you're not," Ron said. "You look terrible."

"I'm _fine_ ," Evanna insisted roughly, beginning to eat lunch and trying to change the subject. "How was your guys' morning?"

"Evanna, we all know you're upset about what we told you yesterday, and we're sorry that we had to tell you — "

"Hermione, I already told Fred it's alright."

"We know you're angry, but you can't go out doing anything stupid," Hermione finished quickly, cringing when Evanna looked over at her.

"Like what?" Evanna asked quietly, looking around at her friends. "What stupid thing would I _possibly_ do?"

"Go after him," Ron said. "You can't do that, Evanna. He's not worth dying for."

Evanna didn't refute this, but she didn't agree either. She just continued eating in silence. Ron and Hermione exchanged glances, but dropped the subject.

"So," George said, attempting to lighten the mood, "what should we do on the first day of holidays?"

"We could play a game!" Fred suggested with childlike giddiness.

"Like, chess — "

"Or Gobstones — "

"Or UNO — "

"Or one of those Never Can Tell games you told us about — "

Evanna let out a snort at that one, but shook her head. "I think I'd like to go see Hagrid."

"Er," the twins exchanged quick looks, before grinning widely, "YEAH!"

"Yeah, maybe he can explain why nobody ever told me about Sirius Black before now."

"Wait, no, that's not what we were looking for," Fred said, and Evanna gave him a sugary grin, standing up to leave.

"We'll join you, Evanna!" Hermione said, quickly standing with Ron as well.

"You two damn Weasleys better stay behind!" Evanna called to the twins without turning around. "I don't think Hagrid particularly likes you much!"

"True enough," George shrugged, watching the Ron and Hermione run to catch up with their friend.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At first, George was glad Evanna had something to preoccupy herself besides Sirius Black. But he hadn't realized she wanted to go on an all-nighter trying to figure out how to win a court case for a Hippogriff. For days, she had been researching and now, she refused to sleep until she found an answer. She sat in a couch in the common room, a very large stack of books beside her, trying not to fall asleep as she read books by the firelight.

She was reading semi out loud, mumbling words under her breath as her eyes skimmed the endless sea of words. She was even wearing the glasses George had given her in first year to help her concentrate. The others had long since gone to sleep, but George sat beside her — not helping necessarily, but giving her moral support all the same.

"And then Nightwing was placed before the Wizengamot, blah blah blah . . . something something opinion overruled . . ." Evanna yawned, rubbing her eyes and shaking her head to stay awake. "Nightwing was given another date for the hearing . . ."

"Eva," George whispered, "why don't you get some rest? It's nearly one in the morning."

"No, I have to — yawn — help Hagrid," Evanna said. "Thank you for your concern though, Georgie."

George sighed, yawning himself. He wasn't about to leave her out here alone, so he lay down on the couch, his feet stretching out behind Evanna. He would just rest a bit while she finished up. But soon enough, he was snoring softly.

Evanna looked over at him. "Huh, didn't know you snored," she sighed, setting the book down on the top of her stack, laying beside him. The couch was just big enough for them to be comfortably laying beside each other, and Evanna decided she would just have a little rest before she continued her research.

Predictably, she didn't awake until late the next morning.

"Oi, Evanna! Wake u — OH MY GODRIC!"

George sleepily flipped his middle finger at Ron, and cuddled Evanna closer to his chest. Evanna grinned tiredly at Ron and Ron could've sworn she whispered something that sounded like 'duck you'.

"We didn't shag, we promise," Evanna said bluntly, sitting up and stretching, despite George's protests.

"Ew!" Ron cried dramatically, turning away with red ears. "What did I ever do to you to deserve this image?! I just came to wake you up because it's Christmas!"

" _What_?!"

"Oi!"

Evanna had hit George with a pillow. "Why didn't you tell me it was Christmas Eve last night?!"

"You seemed a bit busy at the ti — Ow! Quit it, you!" George said with grin, grabbing Evanna's pillow from her.

"Well, wake up and we'll all open presents together," Ron said, heading upstairs to grab the presents that had been laid out by the foot of his bed.

Soon enough, the five Gryffindors had gathered together in the common room, laughing and unwrapping gifts together. They all opened their sweaters from Mrs. Weasley first, each with their respective colours and letters, and all put them on. Ron didn't enjoy this idea as much as the others did, but he nevertheless wore the snuggly maroon jumper.

George grinned and pulled Evanna closer to his side as they all continued to open presents. She laughed when he planted a firm kiss to her cheek. They were starting to get more used to the idea of them being a couple, and George used that as opportunity to be as close to her as possible at all times.

"Hey, who gave me this one?" Evanna asked, holding up a rather broomstick looking parcel. When everyone shrugged, and she found no card, she ripped it open, hoping that it was what she thought it was.

"A Firebolt!" George gasped.

"Like it wasn't _obviously_ a broom," Evanna giggled, examining the beautiful broomstick. "Wow . . ."

"Who sent it to you?" Fred asked, staring in awe at the broom.

"I don't know," Evanna said slowly, fishing around for a card a bit again, but still found nothing.

"Evanna, with this broom, we have an actual chance of getting through to the finals!" George cried excitedly, a huge smile on his face.

"Yeah . . ." Evanna muttered, exchanging looks with Hermione. That was enough for George's smile to disappear.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Well . . . isn't it suspicious that there's no card? No one claiming ' _Merry Christmas, Evanna! Hope you like this gift!_ '" Hermione said anxiously.

"It was probably Dumbledore!" Ron exclaimed. "He gave Evanna that cloak in first year without saying it was him."

"Yeah, but that was my father's. It was an inheritance. This," Evanna shook her head. "This is expensive. Dumbledore wouldn't do that for me."

"Maybe it was one of the Greengrass girls. Or Blaise. Or one of your many other friends who wouldn't want to publicly give you the best broomstick in the market that's obviously meant for you to beat the snot out of the other Quidditch teams," Ron suggested. "You guys don't need to be so suspicious of _everything_."

"We do when Sirius Black is on the loose," Evanna said as calmly as she could while throwing the broom away with nervousness.

"Wait, wait," Fred interjected, grabbing the broom up in his hands, "what are you saying? That Sirius Black bought this for you?"

"It's possible, even more probable," Evanna said. "He was a Black. The Black family was one of the sacred twenty-eight. He definitely had the money to buy this. The only question is why."

"He's jinxed it, of course!" Hermione cried, standing up and snatching the broom from Fred. "I'm going to tell Professor McGonagall right now."

"Whoa, no you don't, Granger," Fred said, taking the broom back. "This is Evanna's broom. At least let her decide what to do with it."

"Whatev — "

"HERMIONE!"

Crookshanks had leapt downstairs from Evanna and Hermione's dorm, and was now growling at Ron's pajama pocket, looking ready to pounce. Hermione grabbed her cat quickly, holding him to her chest.

"Honestly, Ron, he's a cat," Hermione sighed. "It's not my fault he chases rats around."

"Well, Scabbers is the only rat you see around, isn't he?" Ron muttered, holding the rat in his hands. "And I don't see any other cats chasing him! Your cat has something against my rat!"

"Wait, that _is_ weird," Evanna said suddenly. "Why is Scabbers the only pet rat around? Are rats even on the list for pets you can bring?"

"I don't think so," Ron mused. "But a rat obviously isn't a common pet, is it?"

"And yeah, why _is_ Crookshanks the only cat to chase Scabbers?" Evanna asked. "With so few pet rats, you'd think this would've been a problem before now."

"It's because Crookshanks is a _beast_!" Ron complained.

"No, no, that's not it. Otherwise he would've tried to scratch at people. He's perfectly tame . . . But hey, what about Scabbers?" Evanna pointed out.

"What about him?"

"Well, he's outlived the average rat, hasn't he? You've had him in your family for . . . How many years?"

"Twelve, I think, why?" George asked.

"Way too long for an average rat to live . . ." Evanna pondered, shaking her head. "Huh. Weird."

"Okay, I think we've all forgotten the reason we were gathered here," Fred said. "Presents! Christmas! Can we continue that now?"

George laughed. "Yeah, Fred. We can go back to the presents."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Alright, why'd you bring me here, George? You're kinda freaking me out," Evanna said, looking around the empty classroom.

"I just . . . I wanted to give you your Christmas present from me," George said quietly, "and I didn't want Fred making it into a big scene."

"Okay . . ."

George pulled a small box out of his pocket, handing it to Evanna. She removed the lid slowly and gasped. It was a necklace. It wasn't anything fancy or expensive, but on the long gold coloured chain hung a smooth green heart. She held it delicately in her hands, rubbing her thumb over the smooth rock heart.

"It's not expensive, is it?" Evanna asked apprehensively.

"No, I hope that's okay," George said, equally nervous.

Evanna flung her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "George, it's _wonderful_." She hesitantly handed it to him. "Put it on for me, would you?"

George smiled softly, putting the chain around Evanna's neck and connected the clasp. Then he looked at her. She was beautiful. Of course, he was always beautiful to him, but the necklace brought out her eyes, and he adored her bright green eyes.

Evanna grinned, hugging George tightly again. "George, _thank you_. So much. This is wonderful. I love it."

George hugged her tightly back. "Anything for you, Evanna."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hermione was right to do that, you know," Evanna said tiredly, not bothering to look up from her sketchbook.

"Why? You could've helped us have a shot at Quidditch!" Fred cried, aghast that Hermione had told Professor McGonagall about Evanna's mysteriously received Firebolt. Mostly because McGonagall had promptly confiscated it.

"We'll all feel better this way, trust me," Hermione said, but Fred glared at her.

"I don't believe I was talking to you, Granger," he said sourly.

"Hermione was just doing the smart thing," Evanna said.

"The smart thing," Fred scoffed. "She's always doing 'the smart thing'. It drives me mental!"

Hermione flinched at this, remembering the first year, when Ron had thought the same thing. She was sad that Fred felt that way.

Evanna's eyes flitted up to look at the ginger haired boy. "Fred, imagine if the broom _is_ jinxed. What if I had gotten on it and it exploded or something? Look, if there's nothing wrong with it, McGonagall will give it back, but if there is something up, then we _will_ all feel better this way."

He sighed, his face softening. "I guess you're right. As always."

Evanna smiled, and went back to her drawing. Hermione went back over to read up on Hippogriff trials, and Fred, surprisingly, accompanied her. She didn't show any objection to this, though her eyes did flicker up to him every so often. He wasn't helping her read, he was just watching her, and seemed to be struggling to put something into words.

"You," he started hesitantly, and Hermione set down her book to look at him. His ears went red. Usually she wouldn't give this much attention to people who were talking to her, especially when she was reading. "You're very smart," he said awkwardly. "It's a good thing. Sorry if I offended you."

Hermione smiled. "It's okay, Fred. Thank you."

Fred gave a soft smile too. "Yeah, no problem, Granger." He stood up. "Well. I must be going. Mischief doesn't manage itself, you know."

Hermione rolled her eyes exasperatedly when Fred gave her a wink. He was something else.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For the rest of the holidays, the group mostly spent their time playing games and reading books. Evanna had become engrossed with a book series called Trixie Belden, which had been gifted to her by Hermione, who knew how much she enjoyed mystery novels. Evanna appreciated Trixie Belden more than her Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys novels, mostly because Trixie was her age and felt more realistic.

They also spent quite a bit of time learning how to play a game called Mafia. It was quite a fun game, which you played in a large group with a deck of cards. They couldn't properly play it until everyone else was back, so Evanna was quite pleased when the break ended.

She wasn't as pleased when Oliver Wood came around however.

"Had a good Christmas?" he asked.

"Why yes, I — "

"I've been doing some thinking over Christmas, Evanna," he continued, as if he hadn't even heard her speak (which was likely). "After last match, you know. If the Dementors come to the next one . . . I mean . . . we can't afford you to — well — "

"Oh, Professor Lupin said he'd train me to ward off the Dementors. We should be starting this week. He said he'd have time after Christmas," Evanna explained, much to her captain's relief.

"Ah," said Wood, his expression clearing. "Well, in that case — I really didn't want to lose you as Seeker, Evanna. And have you ordered a new broom yet?"

"Well, no, but — "

"What?! You'd better get a move on, you know — you can't ride that Shooting Star against Ravenclaw!"

"She got a Firebolt for Christmas," said Ron, and by Evanna's glare, he got the feeling she hadn't exactly wanted to mention it.

"A Firebolt? No! Seriously? A — a real Firebolt?"

"Don't get excited, Oliver," Evanna said. "I don't have it right now. It's being checked for jinxes."

"Jinxed? How could it be jinxed?"

"Sirius Black," Evanna said wearily, tired of explaining her predicament to everyone. "He's after me. So McGonagall — and myself and Hermione — reckon he might have sent it.

Waving aside the information that a famous murderer was after his Seeker, Wood said, "But Black couldn't have bought a Firebolt! He's on the run! The whole country's on the lookout for him! How could he just walk into Quality Quidditch Supplies and buy a broomstick?"

"I don't know, maybe he got a haircut," Evanna suggested impassively. "It doesn't really matter, McGonagall's going to strip it down — "

Wood went pale.

"I'll go and talk to her, Evanna," he promised, standing to leave. "I'll make her see reason . . . A Firebolt . . . a real Firebolt, on our team . . . She wants Gryffindor to win as much as we do . . ."

"Wait, no, she's going to give it back as soon as she's made sure it's not going to kill me!" Evanna called after him, but he must not've heard her. She gave Ron a look.

"Sorry, but they were going to find out one way or the other," Ron said with a shrug.

"No, I was going to make it a surprise. Just show up to our game with a Firebolt . . . Now everyone's gonna know," Evanna sighed. "Ah, oh well. It'll still be great!"

"If you get the broom back," Ron reminded her.

"I will," Evanna said confidently. "I'll get the broom back, win the Quidditch game, and learn how to ward off Dementors with Professor Lupin. This year is going to turn around."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I added a reference to Trixie Belden and Mafia just because I could haha sorry! And I called that one Hippogriff Nightwing also because I could! Also, Fred and Hermione's relationship is getting slowly and steadily better! And GEORGVANNA! YAY!
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	47. Courtesy of Mafia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.**
> 
> **Chapter 47: Courtesy of Mafia**
> 
> **A/N: Okay, I personally enjoy this chapter; it's really long, but most of it is them playing Mafia.**
> 
> **I AM SO LAME I KNOW I'M SUCH A DORK**
> 
> **I tried to make it fun and funny, and literally riddled with inside jokes that our youth group uses when we play Mafia (Louis Sr (or in this case Ron) always being killed first, accusing Sophia (Lavender) of being sketchy, having someone who is always right even if they're not Sheriff (as Angelina was hinted at being) etc etc) and it was fun to write and I hope it's fun to read. The next chapter will be more exciting I promise.**
> 
> **Also, this chapter was going to be WAY more amazing, but then my COMPUTER DECIDED TO DELETE HALF OF THE CHAPTER! So the part about the patronus used to be WAY better, I was mad about that too :( anyways thanks for reading guys I love you all!**

Professor Lupin and Evanna had scheduled a meeting on Thursday at eight o'clock, so that Professor Lupin could teach Evanna how to ward off Dementors. She was incredibly excited and it _showed_. She couldn't sit still all day, so after all their classes were finished, she and a large handful of her friends began to play several games of Mafia, to help her to pass the time and calm down.

Evanna was just saying, "Alright, everyone wake up," as Neville entered the common room. He saw everyone in the circle open their eyes, sans Evanna whose eyes were already opened. Some of them (cough cough _the Weasley twins_ cough) began stretching as if they _had_ just awoken. Evanna rolled her eyes at them, before continuing.

"So, it was a beautiful summer day outside. We all decided to go swimming in the lake, and play games, like Quidditch and Frisbee and whatever. We were all having so much fun! Then I had the idea of playing Mafia. I began counting up now many people there were, to see if we had enough to play, but there was someone missing."

Neville was confused at the story Evanna was telling. Ginny motioned for him to sit with her, and she began quietly telling him how the game worked.

"'Where's Ron gone?' I asked, but nobody knew. I assumed he was just inside the castle, getting a snack, until I noticed something bobbing in the water," Evanna continued. "'Ron? Hey Ron!' I called, but there was no answer. He began floating closer, and suddenly we noticed that he had been stabbed in the back! The knife said, 'Courtesy of Mafia.'"

"Damn those Mafia!" Fred exclaimed. "Who'd kill off ickle Ronniekins?"

"Everyone apparently," Ron grumbled, flashing his seven of hearts up for everyone to see (meaning he was a citizen). "I'm always killed off first!"

"Who are these dastardly Mafia?" Evanna asked, and a couple hands shot into the air. "I saw Hermione first, then Dean, then Angelina."

"I accuse Fred," Hermione said, jabbing her finger at him. "It's just the sort of thing he would do. He'd love to kill off Ron first to aggravate him."

Fred gasped dramatically. " _Moi_?!"

"Well, I accuse Ginny," Dean said. "She's been talking to Neville and not really paying attention, as if she already knew who was going to die."

"I was explaining the game to him, jerk," Ginny retorted. "Besides anyone could've predicted that Ron would die first."

"I second Fred," Angelina said, and Fred just looked even more aghast. "Hermione's smart, she would have the best chance of being right."

"You wound me! Angie, I thought we were friends!"

"Alright, two on Fred, one on Ginny. Anyone else?" Evanna asked. "Going once . . . Going twice . . . Sold, to Fred Weasley! Fred, why are you _not_ a Mafia?"

"Well, Hermione's obviously off her rocker!" Fred cried. "I mean, sure, that'd be funny, but it's more funny that the doctor didn't catch on and save Ron! If I were a Mafia, I'd want to kill off Angelina, because for some reason she's always right!"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

"Fred, that doesn't help your case," Parvati pointed out.

"Angie must be a Mafia too! That's why she's wrongly accusing me! When my card ends up being a citizen, promise me you'll accuse her!" he gasped dramatically, pretending to be dying. George, just as dramatic, held his 'dying' body, and nodded with fake tears in his eyes.

"Alright boys, break it up," Evanna laughed. "Hands out! Not you Fred, you're the accused, and Ron, you're dead. Thumbs up, Fred lives. Thumbs down, he dies. No in-betweens. Three, two, one!"

Evanna quickly counted all the thumbs. "Sorry, Freddie, but you're dead!"

Fred started 'choking' and fell over the back of the couch. George jumped up, yelling, "I WILL AVENGE YOU!"

"Go back to sleep everyone," Evanna giggled. "Actually, wait, Neville, you want me to deal you in? Okay, here's a card, and _now_ everyone can go to sleep." Fred's head popped back into view resting his chin on the back of the couch so he could watch to see who the Mafia were. "Mafia, wake up."

Hermione, Angelina, George, Colin, and Seamus opened their eyes, and Fred let out a yell of shock and betrayal. He was staring at his twin, mouthing, "How could you?!" and Hermione sent a wink his way.

"Shut up, Fred! The dead don't speak!" Evanna admonished, though she was grinning and biting her lip to keep from laughing. "Now, Mafia choose someone to kill."

Hermione and Angelina seemed to be the leaders of the Mafia, as when they pointed at Katie as the one to kill, the boys followed suit without much thought. George was grinning goofily as his twin continued to stare at him in disbelief.

"Okay, Mafia go to sleep," Evanna instructed, "and Doctor wake up."

Oliver woke up, and immediately pointed to himself. Evanna rolled her eyes.

"Alright, alright, I'm glad you already knew who to save, let's all hope you're omniscient."

A few people laughed, and Evanna told the Doctor to go to sleep and the Sheriff to wake up. Ginny opened her eyes, and pointed to Angelina, to which Evanna nodded her head.

"Okay, thank you, Sheriff, you can go to sleep. Now, everyone can wake up," Evanna said. "Calm down, put your hand down, George, I haven't even told the story yet. For all you know, you could be dead. Now, let's see . . .

"We left Ron floating in the lake, because nobody really wanted to touch his body, and we killed Fred off for his murder and tossed his body in the lake too — that reminds me, why don't you show us your card, Fred?"

Fred flashed his card at everyone; it was a simple two of diamonds, meaning he was a citizen.

"Okay, so we killed off an innocent citizen; those Mafia are so sneaky! Speaking of sneaky Mafia, as we mourned the two deaths, I noticed someone missing from the group. I wandered around a bit, and saw someone standing by the tree. It seemed understandable that they might want to stay away from the group for awhile; they _did_ vote to kill Fred after all.

"But their posture was weird. I went up to them tentatively, to try to comfort them, but I found that Katie _wasn't_ mourning; she was hanging from a noose in the tree, dead as a doornail. The noose had a tag that read, 'Courtesy of Mafia.'

"Who are these dastardly Mafia?" Evanna asked, watching the two hands that had shot into the air. "George and then Ginny."

"Angelina!" George cried, jumping up yet again. "Fred was innocent and she accused him and she's usually right so she must _DIE_!"

"Calm down, even I get it wrong sometimes," Angelina murmured, scooting away from George a bit.

"I second that, for mostly the same reasons, plus she jumped right on the bandwagon after Hermione, which is _such_ a Mafia move," Ginny said with a smirk.

"Wow, okay, two on Angelina, any others?" Evanna asked. When no one said anything, Evanna went back to Angelina. "Okay Angelina, you're on trial!"

"Well, to restate, I'm not omniscient, I'm not always right, it was a human error. I'm really sorry I accused you, Freddie," Angelina said sympathetically, and if Evanna hadn't known she was a Mafia, she might've actually believed her. "Also, I 'jumped onto the bandwagon,' as you put it, Ginny, because I honestly apologetically believed that Fred was of the guilty party and agreed with Hermione's logic. Hey, maybe Fred's right and Mione's a Mafia."

"You're supposed to be defending yourself, not diverting it onto other people!" Hermione complained jokingly.

"Okay, thank you for that defense, Ang, you're very convincing," Evanna said. "Hands out, and thumbs up, she lives, thumbs down, she dies. One, two, three!"

After a quick thumb count, Evanna (hiding a smirk) announced, "You live to accuse another day, Angelina! Let's just hope you're more on the ball this time around! Okay, everyone go to sleep."

This time while everyone's eyes were closed, the Mafia chose to kill Alicia, while the Doctor (predictably) chose to save himself, and the Sheriff asked if Hermione was a Mafia and got a nod. Evanna let everyone sleep for an extra moment while she thought up a story, and then woke everyone up.

"So, three in our party dead — Katie, show us your card —" Katie held up the three of hearts "— three _innocent citizens_ dead, and no Mafia to be found. We're all starting to get worried, so we gather together by the edge of the lake. Safety in numbers, as they say. We weren't going to let any Mafia past us this time, when suddenly — oh no! Alicia starts choking and frothing at the mouth!"

Alicia buried her head in her hands woefully as Evanna continued. "It looked like she had been poisoned earlier somehow! She fell to the ground, and the foam from her mouth spelled out, 'Mafia.' Who are these fiends?! I saw Ginny's hand, and then Hermione."

"Following up Fred and Angelina's prediction, I think it was Hermione," Ginny said. "Though her first accusation was logical, it was also wrong. Besides, even when Hermione lies she's logical, so why couldn't she be a Mafia?"

"Darn it, I can't accuse once I'm accused, can I?" Hermione sighed.

"I second that," Angelina said. "Obviously."

"I'll third. Anything to find Fred's killer," George added.

"Wow, so three on Hermione, any others?" Evanna asked, then when there were no other accusations, she turned back to Hermione. "Hermione, can you prove to us that you're not a Mafia?"

"Yes, I am always logical, but as all of you know, I'm not always right," Hermione said. "I, like Angelina, just thought Fred did it. He obviously didn't, and I'm sorry too, Fred, but nothing can be done about that now. I obviously can't dispute any gut feelings, but I can say that I was going to accuse Parvati, because she's being unusually quiet this game, and usually she's very vocal and smart about her accusations. I'm thinking that she's a Mafia, and is having trouble thinking up arguments about innocent citizens, so she's keeping to herself."

"The Mafia are just playing really well this game!" Parvati refuted. "I'm sorry I'm so confused!"

"Calm down, Parv, you're not on trial here," Evanna said. "Thumbs up, Hermione lives, thumbs down, she dies. One, two, three!"

Evanna kind of gave a laughing sort of gasp. "Oh goodness, you're dead, Mione! To be honest, I thought that was a pretty good defense, but it was seven against five. Hmm . . . How bout you show everyone your card?"

Hermione reluctantly held up an ace of spades, and everyone gasped and cheered.

"Yay, one Mafia down, four more to go! Okay, everyone can go to sleep," Evanna said.

The Mafia chose Oliver to kill, but unbeknownst to them, he then chose himself to save, as he always did. The Sheriff pointed to see if Parvati was a Mafia, but got a shake of the head in return. Evanna was almost laughing at how this game was going, but put on her poker face and told everyone to wake up.

"We were all rattled and decided to go back to the common room. It felt safer in there, especially since you had to know the password to get in. But as we were walking back to the castle, there was A SUDDEN REV OF AN ENGINE! A CAR CAREENED OUT OF THE FORBIDDEN FOREST AND HEADED STRAIGHT AT OLIVER! Buuuuut HE PULLED OUT A GUN AND SHOT AT IT SO THAT IT HAD TO SWERVE AWAY! The license plate read MAF1A. We got lucky this time, and Oliver later testified that the Doctor had given him the gun. But those Mafia are still out there, and they're very mad that we killed off one of their own!"

"What's a gun?" Oliver asked blankly.

"Okay, that story might have been a bit preposterous even for me, but you just need to know that Oliver was almost killed, but was saved by the Doctor," Evanna said. "Now, accusations?"

"I think it was Lavender, " Seamus said. "She just seems sketchy."

"Sketchy?!" Lavender gasped. "How am I sketchy?"

"Well, I accuse Angelina," Ginny said thoughtfully. "I know she had a great defense and stuff, but it seems that, one by one, the Quidditch team members are going out (sans Ron), and who would want the Quidditch team dead more than a fellow member, who just so happens to have great accusations and defenses, and is the one who usually gets it right and is getting it wrong. Besides, she and Hermione are a very good team, and if they were both Mafia, I wouldn't be surprised."

"You know, maybe you're Mafia, Ginny," Lee said. "I mean, you've been accusing people left and right — "

"I only accused Hermione, who _was_ a Mafia, and Angelina, who is also a Mafia, I know it," Ginny interjected.

"Is that an accusation, Lee?" Evanna asked, and when he nodded, she clarified, "Okay, one on Angelina, one on Lavender, and one on Ginny."

"Wait, Ginny was accused, why is there still an accusation on me?" Angelina asked.

"She accused you before she was accused," Evanna explained. "Now, I need a second on one of those, I can't take them all to court."

"I second Ginny," Dean said.

"Okay, first of all," Ginny said, jumping right into her defense, "I am the Sheriff and I am trying to save you people from cold-hearted killers, like Angelina and Hermione. Now, since I am mostly likely to die by your voting or the Mafia — hopefully the Doctor will get the memo but who knows — I'll tell you some of my predictions. I think Colin is also a Mafia, because he can't sit still, and seems to be suppressing a smile, and also George, because what better way to convince people of your innocence than to have your twin brother killed and be on a mission to avenge him. Anyways, do what you like. I hope to stay alive, but whatever."

"Wow, that was very compelling," George said, "but I'm not a Mafia, sis."

"I wouldn't believe a word that comes out of your mouth," Ginny responded, and a couple people 'ooh-ed' and said things like, 'burn' or 'snap.'

"Okay, thumbs up, Ginny lives, thumbs down, she dies. On three; one, two, three!" Evanna quickly counted thumbs and smiled. "Ginny, you were not executed! Now, everybody go to sleep."

The Mafia, Evanna had to admit, were being quite smart this round particularly. They offed Angelina, obviously to arouse suspicion about Ginny again. The Doctor did change it up to save Ginny, which was very nice but unknowingly unnecessary. The Sheriff chose to see if she was right about her George hunch, and she was. Evanna woke everyone up, and launched right into her story.

"We were all congratulating each other on this new achievement: no deaths for a whole round! It had never happened before and we were all excited. But a piercing scream ripped through the air. Oh no, the Mafia had struck again! Angelina had been run through with a knife. When she fell to the floor, the blood seeping from her back spelled 'Mafia.' What is going on, who are these murderers?"

Ginny's hand shot towards the ceiling, as did Seamus', Percy's, Dean's, and Parvati's.

"It was George! I am so right!" Ginny cried. "He killed Ron as a joke, then let Hermione and Angelina kill his twin so he'd have an 'alibi' and now the Mafia killed one of their own for the sole purpose of throwing suspicion onto me! Don't believe a word he says, just kill him!"

"Well, I was going to accuse Lavender of being sketchy, but now I think I'm going to have to accuse you, Ginny," Seamus said, ignoring Lavender's indignant yelp. "You _are_ looking really suspicious, and now you're getting kind of desperate. Why would the Mafia kill their own?"

"I second that," Percy called.

"Third," Dean added.

"Have you all lost your minds? I second George," Parvati said, "because Ginny is absolutely right. This is playing out just like the Mafia would want. I mean, they wouldn't randomly kill Angelina if she was just a citizen, because they would want to get rid of the Sheriff, _unless_ Angelina _was_ a Mafia and they were incorporating her into their revenge plan."

"But they wouldn't be stupid enough to not kill Angelina, because then she would look like a Mafia as well — Oh!" Neville gasped, "I get it. If Angelina wasn't a Mafia, they wouldn't have killed her, to make it look like Ginny was right and she was a Mafia, so we would do their dirty work for them. But this way, they thought we would kill Ginny for them; clever. I third George."

When no one else accused anyone, Evanna said, "Okay, both of you are on trial. You each get to defend yourself, and one of you _will_ die. Keep that in mind. Ginny, you first."

"Exactly what I said before, exactly what Parvati said, exactly what Neville said. The Mafia are smart. I know about Hermione,Angelina and George, and I'm pretty sure Colin is one, and probably Seamus, because that Lavender accusation was so random, so out of the blue, so unrelated. That's my defense."

"Okay, I wouldn't ever kill my twin brother _ever_ ," George said.

"And you didn't, Hermione and Angelina did that, but you're using it to your advantage," Ginny said.

"Quiet you, you're finished your defense! Anyways, I'm not a Mafia! If I were a Mafia, I probably would've killed you, Gin, because you claimed you were the Sheriff, though I have my doubts about that at the moment. Anyways, I'm not Mafia," George finished.

"Alright. Thumbs up, Ginny dies and George lives, thumbs down, George dies and Ginny lives. Three, two, one!" After a thumb count, Evanna announced, "Oh, George, you are _dead_! It was pretty close though. Anyways, George and Angelina, show your cards."

They both sheepishly held up their eight of clubs and four of spades (Mafia cards). The citizens cheered; three of five Mafia dead meant to game was over and the citizens had won. Ginny triumphantly flashed her ace of diamonds (Sheriff card) at everyone, while Seamus and Colin came clean with their two of clubs and five of clubs.

"Of course, I knew you were the Doctor as soon as you survived that one Mafia attack," Angelina said to Oliver, when he revealed he had the queen of hearts (Doctor card). "No one else would save you so out of the blue like that."

"I was devastated that you were Mafia!" Fred gasped, clutching George's shirt. "How could you betray me like that, Georgie? And I had to pretend I didn't know you were pretending to love me!" He gave a fake sniffle.

"I'm sorry, Freddie," George said, fake tears welling up in his eyes, hugging his twin tightly, "but they forced me! I had no choice but to go along with their devious scheme!"

"You played a good Mafia this round," Dean commented to Seamus. "I never realized it was you. The first time you were Mafia, you couldn't keep a straight face."

Evanna grinned as she went around the circle, collecting cards and shuffling them back into the deck. Then she checked her watch and cringed. "Okay guys, I have to go. It's already eight. Feel free to keep playing, and wish me luck!"

"Bye, Evanna!" everyone chorused.

Evanna tossed the deck to Ginny, who caught it with ease, and then she made her way towards where she would meet Professor Lupin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Sorry I'm late, Rem — Professor," Evanna said, as she hurried into the History of Magic classroom. "I was playing several games of Mafia with my friends and it was really fun and — well, yeah. Sorry. I'm here now."

Remus smiled at Evanna kindly. "It's fine, Evanna, no troubles."

Evanna's attention was immediately drawn to large packing case that was jiggling slightly. "What's in there? Wait, let me guess — another Boggart? I mean, you can't use an actual Dementor, and if I recall, I mentioned to you that my Boggart was a Dementor. Also, may I call you Remus?"

"You certainly are perceptive," Remus chuckled. "And yes, I suppose if you'd feel more comfortable calling me Remus outside of a typical classroom setting, you may."

"Thanks," Evanna grinned. "I just feel that I'd like to develop an informal relationship with you; like maybe a pseudo-uncle. I mean, you were one of my father's best friends, and I'm sure if my parents hadn't died and everything, I'd be calling you Uncle Remus anyways."

Remus smiled too, pulling out his wand. "I agree wholeheartedly. Now, shall we begin?"

"We shall," Evanna replied, drawing her own wand as well.

"The spell I am going to try and teach you is highly advanced magic, Evanna — well beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level," Remus began. "It is called the Patronus Charm."

"How does it work?" Evanna asked.

"Well, when it works correctly, It conjures up a Patronus," said Remus, "which is a kind of anti-Dementor — a guardian that acts as a shield between you and the Dementor.

"The Patronus is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things that the Dementor feeds upon — hope, happiness, the desire to survive — but it cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so the Dementors can't hurt it. But I must warn you, Evanna, that the charm might be too advanced for you. Many qualified wizards have difficulty with it."

"Wow! Cool! Hey, what does a Patronus look like exactly?" Evanna asked, her voice filled with intrigue.

"Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it," Remus explained. "An animal that represents that person's personality."

"Again, very cool! How do you conjure it?"

"With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating, with all your might, on a single, very happy memory."

"Any happy little thought?" Evanna joked, and, much to her delight, Remus laughed. "You've seen Peter Pan?"

"Yes, in fact, I have," Remus chuckled. "I've been having a hard time finding a job in the wizarding world, so I spent a lot of time in the Muggle world for my job hunt."

Evanna nodded understandingly. "So, I just have to think of a happy memory, right?"

"Yes, but it has to be a very prominent memory, something that makes you happy no matter what time you think of it," Remus explained. "It can't be a flimsy happy, like a simple Quidditch win or a favourite food. It has to be something _special_."

"Gotcha. Special . . ." Evanna thought back, trying to think of the happiest she'd been. When she first saw Hogwarts maybe. Her reverie of the place. That was happy and special, wasn't it? "Okay, I'm ready."

"Now, the incantation is expecto patronum," Remus told her.

"Expecto patronum," Evanna repeated, nodding. "Got it. Expecto patronum, expecto patronum . . ."

"Focusing on your happy memory?"

Evanna nodded, muttering the incantation repeatedly under her breath, until a wisp of silvery gas whooshed out of the end of her wand, startling her. "Was that it? Was that a Patronus?"

"A partial Patronus, yes. You're doing really well. Do you think you're ready to practice on your Dementor?" Remus asked, moving to his packing case.

Evanna nodded resolutely, gripping her wand tightly and trying to clear her mind of distractions. She wanted to be able to banish that beast, to get rid of the voices. She _didn't_ want to hear her mother's voice again . . . Even though Lily Potter had a beautiful voice . . . She didn't want to hear that beautiful voice in agony . . . She really didn't . . .

Then suddenly, the beast was before her, floating towards her and chilling the air. She took a deep, shaky breath, and yelled, "Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum! Expect . . . expecto . . ."

She felt her knees give way and she was falling . . . falling, falling, falling into darkness . . . and there were screams all around her . . .

_"Not Evanna! Not Evanna! Please — I'll do anything — "_

_"Stand aside — stand aside, girl — "_

"Evanna!"

She awoke to Remus bent over her, looking concerned. She immediately knew what had happened and feel slightly ashamed. She knew she hasn't been trying her hardest.

"Sorry," she murmured, getting shakily to her feet and leaning against a desk to hide the fact that she could barely stand.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked, his forehead creased in worry.

"I'm fine, I just didn't have a strong enough memory obviously," she said stubbornly, taking the chocolate frog he offered her. "I can do this."

She took a moment to think of a new memory. Perhaps when she first rode a broom? That was happy; freedom, after all, was one of the best feelings.

She steadied herself, readied her wand, and said, "Ready."

Remus lifted the lid off of the box and out came the Dementor. Evanna aimed her wand at it, shouting, "Expecto patronum, expecto patronum, expecto patronum!"

It was getting colder and colder, and she was getting more and more tired. Her wand arm felt limp, her eyelids drooped, and her knees became weak once again. Her world was filled with darkness again.

_There was a new voice this time. A male's, and it could only belong to her father. Just like her mother's was so beautiful, he also had a handsome voice. She now recognized how her voice sounded like a mix of her parents._

_"Lily, take Evanna and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off — "_

_The sounds of someone stumbling from a room — a door bursting open — a familiar cackle of high-pitched laughter that Evanna would always recognize as Tom Riddle —_

"Evanna! Evanna . . . wake up . . ."

She jolted upright, beads of sweat on her forehead and tears in her eyes. She sniffled sadly, wiping her face. "I heard my dad," she whispered. "It's the first time I've heard him . . ."

Remus' face wore a melancholy expression; it must've been terrible for him to hear his best friend's daughter say that she could hear her parents' final words before their brutal murder ringing around in her head.

"Evanna, perhaps we could leave this for another time . . . This charm is ridiculously advanced, I shouldn't have — "

"No!" Evanna said resolutely, pushing herself to her feet and grabbing another chocolate frog. "I can do this! I can! Just let me try once more."

She knew which memory she would use this time. She could see all of her friends' faces swimming around in her head. Her friends were enough to shield her from a Dementor. She looked determinedly at Remus, signalling that he could open the case.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" she bellowed, aiming her wand high.

To her delight, a silvery something burst out of her wand tip, standing between herself and the Dementor. It must not have been very strong, because she could still hear screaming, though it was as if it was coming through static this time. Her knees wobbled a bit, but she stood her ground, a wide grin on her face as she strained to see what creature her Patronus was.

Unfortunately, she couldn't conjure the Patronus for long, and it began to flicker away. Remus got rid of the Boggart and Evanna pulled him into a celebratory hug.

"I did it!" she squealed. "Thank you, Remus!"

"You did," Remus said, a bit embarrassed as the small girl hugged him, "and you're welcome, Evanna. Let's stop for the night, and we'll meet again same time next week."

"Alright!" Evanna agreed, still grinning widely as Remus tossed her a Mars Bar (how he had known she loved Mars Bars, she didn't know). "I'll see you later!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Good news, Evanna."

Oliver Wood had appeared so suddenly at her side that she jumped.

"Ravenclaw lost to Slytherin!"

Evanna noticed a couple people from the house in question shoot Oliver some nasty looks.

"Okay," she said, swirling her fork around in her mashed potatoes distractedly. "What does that mean exactly?"

"We'll get to play Ravenclaw, and if we win, we'll be in second place!" Oliver exclaimed happily. Then he looked at her seriously. "When will you be getting that broom of yours back?"

Evanna shrugged, putting a forkful of food in her mouth.

Oliver frowned. "Let's just hope it's soon. If you have to play Ravenclaw with one of the school brooms . . ." He trailed off, but she knew what he was thinking.

"I'm sure Prof McGonagall is doing her best," Evanna said, before taking another bite of her lunch. Oliver didn't look convinced, but he didn't protest.

After a few moments of Evanna eating her mashed potatoes and gravy in silence, Ron plopped down beside her.

"Evanna, I need your intellect."

"Ron, if you ask me to do your Divination homework again . . ."

"No, no." Ron shook his head. "I need your opinion."

" _We_ need your opinion," Fred said, popping up on her other side, almost as if out of thin air. She clutched her heart dramatically and Fred stuck his tongue out at her.

"It's about Hermione," George added, also scooting up across from her. She rolled her eyes.

"Okay, what?"

"How do _you_ think she's getting to all of her classes?" Ron asked.

"I think it's _impossible_ ," Fred said. "She's just bluffing. Telling us she's doing more than she is to prove how smart she is or something."

"No, then why would she be so exhausted, and be doing homework from all the classes?" Ron countered. "She must be doing them — "

"But it's _impossible_!"

"Eva, do you want to settle this?" George asked.

Evanna contemplated everything for a moment, before starting her theory. "Maybe she's having private classes with some of the teachers, but her schedule just shows what classes she would be taking if it were like everyone else."

The boys had to stare at her in disbelief for a minute.

"That's . . ." Fred began in disbelief.

"Really smart," George finished with a grin. He smirked at his brothers. "Told you she would settle all of this!"

"No, not it," Ron said. "Ernie Macmillan said she's never missed a Muggle Studies class — an actual _class_ — and it's at the same time as Divination."

"Then maybe she's using, uh, _magic_?" Evanna suggested. "I mean, I don't know that much about how it all works, but it seems like anything is possible in the wizarding world."

"I don't think there's any magic that can make you in multiple places at once, _and_ still absorb all that information," Fred objected.

Evanna shrugged. "Then I don't know — and frankly, I don't give a damn. Let her do her classes, realize it's way too hard, and next year do less."

"But — !"

"Drop it," Evanna said, going back to her lunch. "Until she completely overexerts herself, I'm leaving her to her own devices."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: I hope you enjoyed that chapter! Now, as a special treat, here are some hilarious youth group quotes:**
> 
> "I accuse Sophia because she's sketchy!"
> 
> "An Angel of the Lord came to me in a dream and said that you were guilty." "I was looking in Psalms, and suddenly, God gave me a revelation that you were a Mafia." "I saw a sheep, and was reminded that the Lord is our Shepard and I knew you killed him off." "*all people are innocent*" "I ACCUSE MARK OF BEING A FALSE PROPHET!"
> 
> "First rule of Mafia: Kill Louis Senior off first round." "I'm pretty sure the first rule of Mafia is that we don't talk about Mafia."
> 
> "We did it with MATH!"
> 
> "What type of cocaine are we making?" "Snocaine"
> 
> "You can never go wrong with large!"
> 
> "OUR CHURCH IS TWO CHICKEN JOINTS IN ONE!"
> 
> "That's not even a white person pass!"
> 
> "It's been four days! He's really dead!"
> 
> "So I ran over this girl today."
> 
> "Anime people have sure sharp chins, like, their chins are so sharp they could cut people with it!" "BUT IMAGINE ANIME PEOPLE SHARPENING THEIR CHINS" "*holds up chin* LET'S DUEL!"
> 
> "This feels like wine" "Wine in church! Josh what would Jesus say?" "That used to be water"
> 
> "*watching Star Wars together*" "Luke: *hears dead Obi-Wan's voice*" "All of us: HELLO FROM THE OTHER SIDE!"
> 
> "Why is he called Obi-Won Kenobi? He is literally losing" "Obi-Won? More like Obi-Lost!" "OBI-DEAD!"
> 
> "We should go to Disneyland"
> 
> "The Illuminati is a metaphor for Satan"
> 
> "Michael W Smith is actually a Satanist" "Mark he literally sings about being against Satan . . ."
> 
> **If you want context you need only ask XD**
> 
> **Please review and remember I love you! ~Jayce**


	48. Emotional Issues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 48: Emotional Issues
> 
> A/N: I'M BACK SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG BUT WRITING IS HARD OKAY
> 
> Also I binge-watched both seasons of the tv show, Scorpion, in less than three days. And then rewatched it all again. I'm a bit obsessed but it's SO GOOD I HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter, hopefully the next one comes out sooner but honestly I'm busy and have a life that I need to be anxious about, so yeah. :) Love you guys

"That's it, I can't deal with this anymore!" Evanna cried loudly, anxiety seeping into her voice as she escaped up the stairs to her dormitory. She heard people calling out for her, but she didn't care. She flopped face down onto her bed, tears in her eyes. She just wanted to get rid of everything that was going on.

Patronuses were _hard_ , her Firebolt _wasn't_ jinxed, Hermione _was_ overexerting herself, and Scabbers was _dead_. Oh, and who could forget a _mass-murderer_ was coming after her! She just wanted a normal life for more than two seconds, was that so wrong?!

"Eva?"

George. Predictably, he had used a broom to fly up the stairs after her.

But she didn't roll over. She just wanted to be alone for more than two seconds. And she told him exactly that.

"Evanna, I just want to help."

"Well, I don't want your help!" Evanna yelled, her voice slightly muffled through her pillows. "I just want to be alone! I just want to stop pretending that everything isn't falling apart and there isn't an escaped convict out to kill me! Can't I just be allowed to freak out sometimes?! Can't I drop the stupid 'I'm-happy-all-the-time-everything's-fine-and-dandy' act for a little while?!"

George, sounding a bit heartbroken at her exclamation, said softly, "Of course, Eva. I'll leave you alone. Your broom works great, by the way."

Evanna turned her head slightly to see that he had flown her Firebolt up. He kissed her lightly on the head, brushing her hair behind her ear, before heading back downstairs, allowing the steps to form into a slide on his way down.

Evanna sighed, wiping away tears and closing her eyes, finally getting her moments of peace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

George was surprised to find Hermione weeping quietly beside his twin. Not surprised that she was next to Fred, as this is how they had been before he had followed Evanna upstairs, but surprised that she was crying. It wasn't often that she let Ron get under her skin, and even more rare that she would publicly show off how it upset her. In fact, he didn't even see why Ron would have any reason to angry with her. Scabbers' death was nothing to be disappointed about.

"It's not your fault, Hermione," Fred tried to console her. "Like you said, it's in their nature. Ron should've gotten Scabbers a cage or something, so that Crookshanks couldn't get him."

"Unless Crookshanks is more cunning than we thought," George added, coming up beside them. "Opening the cage or luring Scabbers out or something."

"I tawt I taw a puddy tat," said Dean, who happened to be passing at that moment, winking at Hermione. She let out a snort and began to giggle. The twins exchanged confused looks.

"I did! I did taw a puddy tat!" Hermione giggled, giving her fellow Muggle-born a hi-five. Crookshanks hopped onto her lap at that moment, and the two burst into fresh peals of laughter.

"What's the joke?" George asked in bemusement.

The laughter died down.

"Muggle-born thing, you wouldn't understand," Hermione said, giving Dean one last hi-five before he headed off to sit with Seamus. "Honestly, one day I should show you the wonder of television. In fact, I should show all of you Weasleys! Well, if Ron's still my friend at that point . . ." Her smile dropped back into a frown.

"He'll get over it," Fred said, consolingly. "You guys are best friends, he'll remember that soon enough. Anyways, he'll probably get a new pet next year and forget all about Scabbers."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Hermione sighed, picking at a loose thread on her sweater angrily. "But it's his own fault anyways. He should've given Scabbers a cage, like you said, or kept a closer eye on him at least."

"Exactly," the twins agreed in unison.

"How's Evanna?" Hermione asked, looking at George, her voice becoming quieter. "She sounded really stressed."

George sighed. "Yeah, she really is. I think that everything's just starting to collapse on top of her. I mean, she's only thirteen and her life's falling apart! It's no wonder she's freaking out. To be honest, I'm surprised it's taken this long."

"Should we go talk to her?" Hermione asked.

"No, she said she just wants to be left alone," George said sadly. "It feels terrible to see her that way."

"You're telling me," Fred said. "I wish we could do more."

"All we can do is be there for her," Hermione said resolutely. "And we will be. Every step of the way."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm going for a fly!"

Fred, George, Ron, and Hermione stared at Evanna, with her braided hair bedraggled and her smile wide, as she marched towards the door, Firebolt in hand. She had been in her dorm room for the past day, barely talking and barely eating, and even though today was the day of Gryffindor's Quidditch match against Ravenclaw, nobody had expected Evanna to show.

"Evanna!" Fred said in surprise. "It's the Quidditch match today! Don't you want breakfast or something?"

Evanna turned to face her friends as they (and everyone in the common room, really) stared at her in disbelief.

"I'm skipping breakfast and going for a fly," she said slowly. "You can come, or you can stay here."

In less than a second, there was a scramble and her four best friends were up and hurriedly following her through the portrait hole (though Hermione and Ron were still not speaking to each other).

Evanna didn't actually fly for too long. She did a couple laps around the pitch and loop-the-loops, and then handed the broom over to Ron, who had been dismal since the demise of his pet. He gleefully began to fly around, and Evanna sat on the grass alone, away from where the twins and Hermione stood watching Ron.

George tentatively came over to sit by Evanna. "Hey," he said, examining her face curiously.

"Hey," she replied, not looking at him, her eyes focused on where Ron was in the air.

"How are you?" George asked cautiously.

"Fine," she said.

"No," George said, and Evanna glanced over at him. "I'm asking Evanna Lily Potter how she's doing, not The Girl Who Lived. Because we all know The Girl Who Lived is a complete badass who thinks You-Know-Who is nothing but a fly on the wall. But Evanna Potter seemed pretty distraught the other night."

Evanna sighed, her green irises staring forwards. "Evanna Potter," she said, "is terrified of what might happen to her this year. Evanna Potter wonders if Sirius Black will kill her. Evanna Potter wants to hide in her dorm for the rest of the year.

"But Evanna Potter cares more about her friends than herself and feels terrible about abandoning them to selfishly sit in her bed. So Evanna Potter decided to push through and commit to some social interaction. Evanna Potter decided she would beat Ravenclaw and makes sure that her friends mended their relationship and pretend that she feels fine."

Evanna sighed, finishing with, "George Weasley should keep this quiet for their sake," and nodding to Ron and Hermione. "They need Evanna to be okay right now."

George nodded, unsure of what else to do. He cared deeply for Evanna but he didn't want her to pretend everything was okay when it wasn't. He didn't know what he'd do otherwise if he were in her situation though, so he couldn't suggest anything better.

After a few minutes, George finally said, "Evanna Potter should give herself some love too." He kissed the side of her head gently. "She deserves it."

Evanna smiled sadly at him, standing up to go stand with the others again. "One day, George Weasley. One day."

She then yelled up at Ron to let Fred have a turn, who had been watching his younger brother enviously. After Fred, George had a go, and Evanna offered Hermione a chance but Hermione 'would rather keep her feet on the ground, thanks'.

A little while later, Astoria, Tracey, Daphne, and Blaise came up, with some food for all of them ("Sorry it's not much; there's only so many type of breakfast foods you can carry in napkins.") and to ogle Evanna's broomstick ("I cannot _believe_ the luck you have with broomsticks. Have you ever used a cent of your own money on one?"). Ginny came sometime after that, saying she would've come earlier but Percy had forced her to eat more food. This made Evanna wonder how much she was eating, but she didn't say anything; it would be hypocritical since she had just spent a day locked in her room, basically starving herself. Ginny also knew more about Quidditch and broomsticks than she let on, surprising even her brothers with her knowledge of the Firebolt ("Did you know it has a built-in auto-brake?").

Draco Malfoy and his cronies made an appearance as more and more people began to trickle into the stands, insults at the ready.

"Sure you can manage that broom, Potter?" he drawled.

Evanna gave him a deadpanned expression. "You, my friend, are an idiot. Do you think I've just been sitting around for the past few hours? I've been practicing, and you'd be surprised, the Firebolt is even easier to handle than my old Nimbus, and definitely better than _your_ Nimbus — "

"Got plenty of special features, hasn't it?" Malfoy interrupted. "Shame it doesn't come with a parachute — in case you get too near a Dementor."

His cronies sniggered, but Evanna simply rolled her eyes.

"Pity you can't attach an extra arm to yours, then it could catch the Snitch for you."

The Gryffindor team had just come down, making their way to the changing rooms at this point, and they began giggling at Evanna's retort. Malfoy went red — with embarrassment or anger, Evanna couldn't tell (probably both) — and he stalked away, Crabbe and Goyle close behind.

"It's a wonder those oafs don't step on his robes, they're so close behind him," Ron said, with an eye roll.

"Or on the backs of his shoes," Daphne added with a giggle. She made a crude imitation of him, saying in a high pitched drawl, "'My shoes get pulled off my feet one more time Goyle, and I'll tell my father!'"

Everyone laughed, and it was moments like these that Evanna felt safe.

Wiping tears from her eyes, she sighed. "Alright, Weasleys, we better get in there. See you guys later!"

"Good luck, Evanna!" the rest of her friends chorused, as she and the Weasley twins headed into the Gryffindor change rooms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The party in the Gryffindor common room after Evanna had won the game was filled with so much ecstasy and fun that it felt as though they had already won the cup.

"That was possibly the stupidest thing that Draco Malfoy has ever done," Ginny giggled.

She was referring to the fact that Draco had dressed up as a Dementor and attempted to scare Evanna during the match. He had failed to even phase her of course; as soon as she had flown by him and he didn't make her feel faint, she knew he wasn't a real Dementor. She did humour him by casting her patronus anyways, and it was almost a corporeal one that time.

"Agreed," Evanna said, grinning widely. "Did you see the look on his face when I cast the patronus charm?"

"He looked like he thought you were going to cast an unforgivable curse," Ginny laughed.

Evanna was about to ask what curses that Ginny would deem as unforgivable, but was distracted by the Weasley twins beginning to juggle butterbeer bottles. She almost didn't notice the fact that Hermione was buried beneath books instead of enjoying the party, until Fred stopped juggling to go sit by her. Evanna wanted to go too, but she was sure that Fred had it handled.

"Hey Granger," he said, wearing his usual confident grin, as he plopped down on the chair across from her. "Are you enjoying the party?"

"I need to read this by Monday, Frederick," Hermione said without looking up from her book. "So no, not especially."

"Hey, you didn't even look up," Fred pointed out. "How do you know I'm not George?"

"I can tell you two apart," she said simply, flipping the page. "Besides, George never bothers me like this."

Fred frowned. "Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to know why you've been studying all day. Don't you need a break?"

"I saw the game," Hermione corrected. "That was a break. Evanna played extraordinarily, and it's good that we won, but you must understand that I need to finish this."

"Have some food, Hermione," Fred said, standing up and extending his hand to her. "Or dance with me. Or even just go talk with some _real_ people, Ron and Evanna are right over — "

Hermione had saddened at the mention of Ron's name, her lip quivering and her hands shaking. "I can't, Fred, I still have four hundred and twenty-two pages to read, and besides," she glanced at Ron sadly, "he doesn't want me to talk to him."

Rob must've overheard this, because, as if to prove the point, he remarked loudly, "If Scabbers hadn't just been eaten, he could have had some of those Fudge Flies. He used to really like them — "

This seemed to have been too much, and Hermione burst into tears. She grabbed her book and darted to her common room with Fred calling after her.

"Ron!" Evanna said angrily. "Stop all of this!"

"No," said Ron flatly. "If she just acted like she was sorry — but she'll never admit she's wrong, Hermione. She's still acting like Scabbers has gone on vacation or something."

" _Ron!_ " she said exasperatedly. "She just burst into tears because of all of this guilt you're lobbing onto her! She feels bad enough and don't you remember that she's still a bit socially awkward and doesn't really know how to communicate her feelings? Before we became her friends, she didn't know how to make friends and was just a smart aleck to everyone! She feels terrible that she couldn't better control her cat, and she feels angry that you felt that your rat should get special treatment, as if you didn't need to take action to protect Scabbers too! You _both_ need to kiss and make up _AGAIN_! I'm tired of you getting into petty arguments that last weeks until I get depressed and guilt you both into forgiving each other!"

"Why are you trying to make me feel guilty?" Ron asked.

"Because you should," Evanna spat. "Ugh, I'm tired of you two fighting. You're such good friends when you're actually friends!"

Ron was silent.

"You just put what I said into consideration," Evanna said, huffing angrily. "I'm going to bed, Ron. I'll see you in the morning."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A scream woke Evanna up. At first she thought she had dreamed it, then she saw Lavender awake, and Hermione rubbing her eyes and Parvati looking around for the source of the noise. Since none of them remembered screaming, they labelled it as a nightmare scream and attempted to sleep again. Only a few moments later, they could hear Ron yelling downstairs about something.

Evanna sighed. "I'll go see what's happened. He probably had a nightmare that Hermione never became his friend again."

Hermione gave the smallest of smiles as Evanna headed downstairs.

Ron was thrashing around, with Dean, Seamus, and Neville around him, trying to calm him down. Evanna raised an eyebrow; they seemed to be asking him if he had a nightmare, but he seemed adamant that whatever he saw what real. As soon as he saw her, relief flooded into his face.

"Evanna! You believe me, don't you?" he cried.

"Er, believe you . . . referring to what exactly?" she asked in confusion. "That you're an enormous git for ditching Hermione? Yes."

"No, no!" Ron shook his head frustratedly. "Sirius Black was above my bed with a knife!"

Evanna stared at him in shock. More people were beginning to trickle downstairs, watching them with tiredness and confusion.

"Ron, why on _earth_ would he be over your bed with a knife?" she asked. "Wouldn't it be more realistic that he'd be over _my_ bed with a knife?"

"No," Ron said frantically, "he wouldn't be able to get up the girls' staircase! He must've known that you and I were friends and was going to force me to get you for him — "

"Everyone back upstairs!" Percy interrupted, obviously not listening to their conversation, more focused on all of the students that were now in the common room.

"Perce — Sirius Black!" said Ron, and this time he definitely caught his older brother's attention. "In our dormitory! With a knife! Woke me up!"

Everyone in the common room was listening now.

"Nonsense!" said Percy, looking startled. "You had too much to eat, Ron — had a nightmare — "

"My curtains were actually slashed!" Ron argued.

"Ron, honestly — "

"Enough is enough!" Professor McGonagall had entered, looking furious. "I'm thrilled that Gryffindor won as well, but — "

"This isn't a party, Professor," Evanna interrupted. "Ron was confronted by Sirius Black."

There was another silence, and Professor McGonagall said, "Don't be ridiculous, how would he have gotten through the portrait hole?"

Evanna shrugged. "He already tried once, maybe he figured out how to this time."

"Ask him," Ron said, pointing at the back of Sir Cadogon's picture. "He would know."

Professor McGonagall sighed exasperatedly, but asked the knight whether he had let anyone into the common room that night. Everyone was shocked when he said yes.

"You — you did?" Professor McGonagall said in horror. "But — but the password!"

"He had 'em!" said Sir Cadogan proudly. "Had the whole week's, my lady! Read 'em off a little piece of paper!"

The whole room was silent again. Evanna exchanged looks with Ron, and then they both looked back at the guilty and terrified Neville.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that I skipped the Quidditch game, but I wouldn't have changed it much, so yeah. I'm trying, and lots of peole like this story and it's flattering, but writing is hard so yeah sorry if it's not the best. Love you though.
> 
> Please review! ~Jayce


	49. An Amalgamation of Chapters and an Author's Note I was Sad to Write

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter, and under no circumstance do I claim ownership to the series.
> 
> Chapter 49: Secret Friendships and Not-So-Secret Despisings
> 
> Chapter 50: Elation and Execution
> 
> Chapter 51: The Intriguing Tale of Sirius Black
> 
> Chapter 52: Contemplative
> 
> A/N: W O W this is a sight for sore eyes! I've gotten tons of comments asking for this to be brought back and so I found this crappy draft for chapter 52 for you guys! (also chapters 49-51 because for some reason year-and-a-half-ago-Jayce didn't post those here too?? I'm as clueless as you man, sixteen year old me was a mess)(not that I'm any different now lol) HOWever...
> 
> I'm not back really? So here's the thing: I've LOVED writing this! It's been super fun and stuff and it'll always have a place in my heart, but over the past year and a bit I've been going through a lot of mental illness stuff and also I've just been focusing my writing on my original novel that's not close to being published but I wish it was because it is my pride and joy and once it's published I can finally start working more on my OTHER million novel ideas I have
> 
> I don't think I'll ever be able to finish this fanfic. I love it but I also hate it. There are so many flaws and it's not my greatest writing and, let's be honest, Evanna's not the greatest character. You've all been SO sweet to me, and I hate that I have to say this, but I just honestly don't think I'll be continuing with this. I had so many cute plans for Evanna and George and for all the other pairings too, but realistically, it's not gonna happen :(
> 
> I love you all so much, thank you for supporting me throughout this whole mess of a story! If you're interested in starting to keep in contact, or if you're interested in my original novel, or if you're interested in potentially continuing Evanna's story or just learning about what other plans I had for the rest of it, please feel free to send me a message, here or on any of my other social medias :) if you're actually interested in me as a person and my weird life, check my instagram, cupcakeofawesomeness! That's where I post all my life stuff and art :)
> 
> Thank you all again for making this such a fun experience. Maybe I'll write another fanfic here and there, but this is unfortunately where Evanna's story must end. I love you all.

**Chapter 49: Secret Friendships and Not-So-Secret Despisings**

 

* * *

Life was chaotic for the next few weeks.

Ron was praised as some sort of hero, and Neville as being shunned by everybody except for a select few, including Evanna. Evanna had stopped sneaking out to Hogsmeade because of the newfound dangers it presented and because she had somehow misplaced the Marauder's Map (she was  _never_  telling the twins). Worst of all, Hagrid had lost Buckbeak's trial. The only good thing that had come from it was that Ron and Hermione had finally made up.

The trio were just coming back from Hagrid's hut, discussing how they would help Hagrid win the appeal, when they heard a familiar drawl.

"Look at him blubber!"

Evanna snapped her fingers with an idea and pointed at Malfoy. "Walrus!"

He blinked. "I — what?"

"Walrus, blubber, walruses have blubber . . . I win  _this_  game of Twenty Questions," Evanna grinned. She loved to confuse people as a way of retaliation — it was hilarious.

Malfoy glanced at his cronies, who sort of pushed him forwards. He almost seemed like he didn't want to say anything more, but he smirked and continued snobbily, with his head held high. "Have you ever seen anything quite as pathetic? And he's supposed to be our teach — !"

Malfoy was abruptly cut off by Hermione stomping up to him and slapping him.  _Hard_.

"Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul — you evil — " Hermione couldn't seem to find the words, but raised her hand threateningly again to emphasize her point.

"Woo!" Evanna cheered. "Go Hermione! Give the jerk a taste of his own medicine!"

"Hermione!" Ron gasped in awe.

Hermione, panting, turned back to her friends as Malfoy and crew scampered off with their tails between their legs. "I just can't  _stand_ him," she seethed. "He's such a — a — "

"Bastard?" Ron suggested.

"Yes," Hermione agreed angrily. "A complete and utter bastard. Evanna, you  _have_ to beat Slytherin in the Quidditch final! I don't think I'd be able to stand it if he won!"

"Aye aye," Evanna grinned with a goofy salute. Then she linked her arms through her friends, saying, "Anyways, let's head to class, shall we?"

* * *

Draco sat alone in an empty classroom, rubbing his face. He felt a mix of anger and embarrassment. He had been hit by a girl. Hermione Granger no less! But he also felt somewhat guilty, though he couldn't figure out why. Everything he said was true and it wasn't aimed at her, so why did she hit him? He shook his head; girls were confusing!

But he wasn't alone for long. He soon heard the faint sound of sobbing and none other than Ginny Weasley burst into the classroom, wiping tears from her face. They stared at each other for a good minute.

"Weasley," he said awkwardly.

"Malfoy," she replied, sitting on a desk across from the one he sat on.

They sat in another few minutes of silence, both feeling incredibly awkward. Not awkward because they were from different sides, but because they were both vulnerable.

"What happened to your face?" Ginny finally asked, staring at the red mark across his cheek.

"What happened to yours?" Draco retorted hotly, rubbing his cheek.

"Draco, I'm serious," Ginny said, and Draco went red at her use of his first name.

"You can ask your friend Granger about that," he muttered.

"Ah, so Hermione gave you a good slap. It's a wonder she didn't do it sooner," Ginny mused.

"Hey!"

"Draco, I think we both know that you are a bastard to everyone, especially Evanna, Ron, and Hermione. I have no doubt that you deserved it," Ginny said.

Draco glared at her, but instead of arguing, he just mumbled, "So, uh, what happened to you?"

"That bitch, Pansy Parkinson," Ginny said plainly. "She was just being a complete bitch, as always. She doesn't usually get to me, but today she was just being so — so — so  _ugh_."

Draco, who didn't doubt that Pansy would be mean to the youngest Weasley, whistled, commenting instead about Ginny's language. "What a vulgar mouth! I didn't know you had it in you."

"I'd never swear around my brothers — or  _Heaven forbid my mother_  — but really I have the foulest mouth, like, ever," Ginny smirked.

Draco laughed, and they continued to chat, a bit hesitantly, since they still weren't quite sure if they were enemies or not.

"Okay, okay, but seriously," Ginny said, "when Buckbeak attacked you and you were in the hospital wing, I was scared out of my wits. I totally thought you were  _actually_  really badly injured and that it was a vicious beast!" She laughed and Draco blushed.

"I actually thought it was at the time! But," he rubbed the back of his neck embarrassedly, "I now realize that I insulted it, basically egging it on to attack me."

"Draco Malfoy!" Ginny gasped with a smile. "Are you actually admitting to being  _wrong_?"

"You don't need to tell the whole school about it! But, I guess so, yeah."

Ginny grinned. "There's hope for you yet! You should try letting this nice side of you show more often, Draco."

Draco went quiet. He didn't like commenting on his personality. All of his family and so called 'friends' (though all of them were either stupid or incredibly mean) expected him to be a pure-blood supremacist and, while he wasn't exactly proud of it anymore, he was more nervous about disappointing them than changing to how he really felt now that he had matured a bit.

Ginny sensed it was a sensitive subject, so she quickly changed it by asking a question that had been plaguing her mind since the beginning of the year. "So, what are we anyways?"

"What?"

"We're not enemies, I don't think, since I'm the only person you're civil to," Ginny said thoughtfully. "We've even met and talked in secret several times. So what are we? Acquaintances? Or, dare I say,  _friends_?"

"I don't know," Draco admitted. "I suppose we are friends, aren't we?"

Ginny grinned. "Really?"

"Yeah, sure," Draco shrugged. "But you know that we can't be seen together, right? Like,  _ever_ , Ginny."

"Yeah I know, but I like the nice side of you," Ginny said with a large smile. "We should keep having these secret meetings, it's fun."

Draco couldn't hide his smile. "Yeah. I can't  _believe_  I'm saying this, but . . . You, Ginny Weasley, are my friend."

"And you, Draco Malfoy, are mine," Ginny repeated. Then she turned to leave. "But I was never here and we never had this conversation, right Malfoy?"

"Of course, Weasley," Draco replied, standing up as well. "Your very presence here is insulting to me."

Ginny winked at him before she vanished out of sight and Draco couldn't help but blush.

* * *

Hermione missed Charms class. It was completely unlike her. Evanna and Ron said that she had been right with them until they were inside the class, and then she was gone. They weren't worried, but Fred suspected that had something to do with the fact that they had just been practicing Cheering Charms. So it was up to him to find out what happened.

He casually ditched George, Evanna, and Ron at lunch, so that he could slip up to the Gryffindor common room alone. He assumed that the common room was the first place to check, and then if she wasn't in there, he could start worrying a bit more. But as soon as he stepped through the portrait hole, his fears were diminished.

"Merlin, Granger," he muttered, walking up to where she slept on top of her Arithmancy book. "You had me a bit worried there."

He sat beside her and watched her as she peacefully slumbered. He almost didn't want to wake her. She hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in ages, but he knew that she had another class to get to and lunch would probably benefit her.

"Granger," he said, poking her lightly. "Granger. Graaaaanger."

He finally decided that if it was going to be trouble to wake her, he would just wait. So he lay his head down next to her, running his fingers through her hair. He often teased George for his crush on Evanna, but now he felt butterflies in the pit of his stomach as he realized that was starting to feel something for Hermione. But no, that wasn't true. Their friendship was just getting stronger, that was all.

Finally, in a last ditch attempt to wake her, he leant close to her ear and murmured, " _Hermione_."

She suddenly jolted awake and Fred pretended that he hadn't been doing anything. He simply rolled his eyes, attempting to hide his red ears, and said, "It's about time, Granger. I've been poking you for ages."

"Wh — what?" Hermione asked groggily. "What's my next class?" She attempted to stumble to her feet and grab her huge book, but she tripped over herself and Fred barely caught her.

"Whoa, slow down, Granger," he said. "You're obviously dead on your feet, it's lunchtime and you need to rest. You missed Charms Class, Hermione, you need to take a br — "

" _I missed Charms?!_ " Hermione cried, attempting to pull herself together. "Oh no, I have to go apologize to Professor Flitwick — "

"No you don't." Fred grabbed her wrists. "Hermione, you need to take a break. Go eat lunch with Ron and Evanna, and  _then_ you can go apologize to Flitwick and get yourself ready for Divination, okay?"

"Frederick — !"

"Granger," Fred said sternly. "You're completely overexerting yourself. All I ask is you take a lunch break, okay? Then you can do whatever shit you want."

"I — " Hermione hesitated, but finally hung her head in surrender. "Fine."

Fred grinned. "Good! Come on, let's go. I'm starving."

* * *

"Hermione!"

Evanna was squealing in joy, punching Hermione lightly and repeatedly in the shoulder,obviously excited. Ron was by her side in an instant too, his grin wide and his feet bouncing continuously.

"Hermione, that was  _amazing_!" Evanna exclaimed. "You stuck it to the man and showed Trelawney who was the boss!"

"I don't really know what Evanna just said, but I agree!" Ron cried. "That was great! Rebellion! Yeah!"

"Oh dear, you two aren't going to start rebelling too, are you?" Hermione asked, though she was unable to hide her smile.

"Oh, no," Ron said. "We need this class; we're not taking fifty million classes like you are Mione. We actually need to keep at Divination. Though," he added thoughtfully, "you have to admit that some of Trelawney's predictions have actually come true, strangely enough."

The girls looked at him weirdly, and he elaborated.

"She  _did_ say that around Easter one of the class would leave forever, and I doubt you're coming back," Ron said. "I know it's probably just a weird coincidence, but still . . ."

As they passed, Parvati and Lavender giggled, grinning at Ron. His ears went red and he waved at them.

"I don't care whether a couple coincidences occurred! She's a terrible teacher! She's looney! ' _Oh, my dear, you have the Griiiiiiiim_ ,'" Hermione drawled, in a spot-on Trelawney impression. "What a load of  _shit_."

Fred and George, who had just been passing at that time, laughed. Both grinning widely, Fred said, "Finally, something we agree on, Granger."

* * *

 

**Chapter 50: Elation and Execution**

 

* * *

Evanna, Ron, and Hermione were distant from each other in the following weeks. Hermione, even after dropping out of Divination, still had an impossible amount of classes. Her friends were now accustomed to her being holed up in the library all day every day, with bags and tears constantly around her eyes. Ron had taken up responsibility over Buckbeak's appeal. He was taking it very seriously, often alongside Hermione in the library for hours on end, researching Hippogriff trials. But Evanna, on the other hand, was spending almost all of her free time on the Quidditch pitch, practicing for their game against Slytherin. The pressure was building and she was really beginning to want to win.

One of the only times the three actually spent time together was at meals. Usually they were smiling and interchanging stories of what they had been up to. Today, however, they basically collapsed into their seats.

"Bloody hell," Ron muttered, rubbing his eyes wearily as Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. "I feel like I haven't seen sunlight in weeks."

"We haven't," Hermione mumbled, almost dozing off where she sat. Ron had to shake her to keep her awake.

"Speak for yourself, I think I'm getting sunburnt," Evanna moaned, rolling her shoulders. "I've been on my broom more than I've been in my bed."

She suddenly whipped around to give a death glare to the Slytherin student who had thrown something at her head.

"Have they been harassing you a lot?" Ron asked sympathetically.

" _Ha_! A lot is an understatement," Evanna seethed. "I can't escape it! I'm being tripped, hit, laughed at, talked about, and who could forget all the jinxes I've had to ask people to counter for me. Don't ask," she added as Hermione opened her mouth with a worried expression on her face.

"Well, at least you'll cream them at the match, won't you?" Ron said with a grin.

"You better," Hermione said, her expression angering as she thought back to Draco Malfoy.

"Don't worry, I'm ready. Plus," Evanna leaned in and lowered her voice, "I've figured out a few tactics that are sure to confuse Draco and give me the advantage."

Both of her friends grinned widely at this news.

"So, how about you two? How is the appeal coming along, Ron?"

"Oh, it's actually going really well. I got Hermione to quickly read over what I have so far, and even she admitted that it was well done!" Ron said pridefully.

"That's great!" Evanna hi-fived him and the turned to Hermione, who was almost asleep again. "And how about you, Hermione? Is your schoolwork going well?"

"Oh yes," Hermione yawned, jolting upright when she was addressed. "Very well. Yeah. Really well." She lay her head back on a shoulder — except this time it wasn't Ron's.

"Er, Hermione?" Fred asked, obviously confused as to why one of his best friends had started taking a nap on him after he just sat down beside her.

"Just shut up and let me sleep," Hermione mumbled, nearly unintelligible.

Fred looked over at Ron and Evanna and Ron gave him a look in return that said 'let-her-sleep-she-needs-it'. Fred almost looked content as he carefully began to eat, trying not to wake the bookworm.

"So, are you excited for the big game tomorrow?" Ron asked quietly, going back to Evanna.

"Yeah, excited and nervous. Oliver is putting a lot of pressure on me, but I'm pretty excited, yeah," Evanna replied. "Are you excited to take a break and see it?"

"Definitely," Ron grinned. "I just hope Hermione comes too."

"What?! I'm up, I'm awake!" Hermione woke with a start when George sat next to Fred and nudged him. Fred gave him twin a semi-annoyed look.

"Come on, Mione, you better eat," Ron sat, pushing her plate towards her. "Then we'll go upstairs and get some much needed sleep before tonight."

"Sleep? But — "

"No buts," Ron admonished. "I heard there's going to be a huge party in the common room tonight, so if you think we're getting any sleep later, you're sorely mistaken."

* * *

Evanna was so ready. She really was. At least, that's what she kept telling herself.

She walked with confidence and grinned at Cho Chang when she wished her good luck. She listened to Oliver as he rambled on about the weather conditions and she changed into her Quidditch robes quickly. She waved at her friends when the team walked out onto the field and she laughed when she saw that Tracey, Daphne, and Blaise were wearing a Gryffindor scarlet. But somehow, as she mounted her broom, she still felt like she was going to be sick.

But she gave a genuine smile to Draco Malfoy and said, "Good luck."

He looked confused for a split second, then he sneered, "May the best Seeker win."

"You shouldn't say that," Evanna said, still wearing a sugary sweet smile. "You just admitted that I'm the best Seeker."

Fred and George laughed loudly at that and Draco glowered at her.

And then they were off, flying around the field, chasing or beating or keeping or seeking. Oliver's most repeated bit of advice swam around Evanna's mind.  _Don't get the Snitch until Gryffindor is more fifty points up._ All she had to do was make sure that she kept Draco away from it until that time. Simple enough, considering how easy it was to confuse the poor boy.

For the first while, the match went significantly well. Though everyone was fighting, Gryffindor quickly gained thirty points before Slytherin had even scored one goal. It was rather amusing to watch the rest of the players fighting, though she didn't have very much time to watch it, since she had to keep an eye out for the Snitch and an ear out for when Gryffindor was fifty points over Slytherin.

The only rather annoying thing was that Malfoy kept right behind her the whole game. A few times she had exasperatedly yelled out things like, "Are you following the rules this close?!" or "I'm flattered, Malfoy, really, but I don't have time for paparazzi right now!" but it did nothing to deter him.

When the game was seventy – ten for Gryffindor, Evanna finally saw the Snitch and sped towards it. Or at least, that's what she meant to do, but Draco had grabbed the back of her broom. At first she was too surprised to say anything, then finally she gasped happily and squealed, "DRACO MALFOY! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'RE MY BIGGEST FAN!"

Draco let go in shock, the whole Slytherin team turned to stare at him, and Evanna turned back to grab the Snitch, but it had disappeared again, so instead, she continued to gush over how much Draco loved her.

"I can't believe you want my autograph!" she cried, pulling out a green sharpie. "Where should I put it? Your forehead? Yes, that will do!"

Draco pulled away from her and she smiled sweetly. "That's what you get for messing with Evanna Potter," she hissed, recapping her sharpie and flying away as Gryffindor was given a penalty shot. This time, Draco didn't follow her as closely.

Unfortunately, Slytherin had soon gained another goal and they were banding together against Angelina as she was in possession of the Quaffle. Evanna smirked and sped towards them without stopping or slowing. They screamed, scattering, and Evanna stopped just above Angelina, giving her a open goal post.

Then, fear overtook her as she saw Malfoy looking triumphant. So she zoomed across the field to where she too noticed the tiny golden ball. She had a much faster broom but he was much farther ahead of her, so it was anyone's game.

Except, oh wait, Evanna was the better Seeker.

She flew across the field, dodged a Bludger, overtook Malfoy, and swiped the Snitch out of the air. It took everyone a moment to process what had just occurred, and then three fourths of the stadium erupted into thunderous applause. Evanna stared at the flying ball in her hand in elated awe. They had just won the game.

Suddenly, Oliver plowed into her, hugging her as tightly as he could, shouting and crying joyously. Then came the Weasley Twins, who each planted a kiss on her cheek, as she so often did to them, and then the three Chasers joined the group hug, also cheering and screaming about their victory. And in that moment, Evanna felt happier than she had felt in a long time.

* * *

Nothing could deter Evanna's elation, not even exams. She kept up a positive attitude as she studied with her friends and an even more buoyant mood as they took the exams. This inspired her friends (perhaps excluding Hermione) to have less stress, and created an all around better atmosphere. She even found time to grin during Potions, as she tried her hardest to create a Confusing Concoction.

It was after almost all the exams had passed that her mood shifted.

She, Ron, and Hermione had run into Cornelius Fudge, who seemed very certain that Buckbeak was going to lose the appeal. He even had an executioner show up. Ron was completely furious and only held his tongue because Hermione reminded him that his father worked at the ministry and causing trouble may not reflect very well. The only thing the three of them could do was hope that Hagrid kept his head during the appeal and got Buckbeak off.

Unfortunately, Evanna and Ron's last exam was Divination, which was sure to predict the death of Evanna in some way or another. It was never very fun hearing that you were going to die when a mass murderer was hunting for you, no matter how loony your teacher was.

Trelawny was seeing each student separately, so Evanna and Ron were going to be near the end. Ron was continuously checking his watch, counting down the minutes until Buckbeak's appeal, and Evanna conversed with her friends, trying to keep her mind off of the fact that the Hippogriff might be killed.

As each student came back from the exam, they refused to reveal anything, claiming that something horrible would happen if they did. Evanna giggled, saying the only horrible thing would be that they would be helping someone else cheat. Most of them glared at her when she said this. Neville chuckled a bit nervously, but still wouldn't say anything.

When Parvati came down, she was beaming. "She says I've got all the makings of a true Seer!"

"As if she'd know what that's like," Evanna muttered.

"That's really cool, Parvati!" Ron said loudly with a grin, to cover up Evanna's comment.

"Thanks, Ron," Parvati replied, before hurried off with Lavender. "Good luck!"

Evanna gave Ron a prominent look. "Really?"

"Well, she's happy, why should we wreck that by telling her the truth?" Ron mumbled, his ears going a bit red. He was saved by being called up to do his exam.

"We are talking about this after," Evanna called, almost positive he had a crush on the girl. In about twenty minutes, when he came down, she said, "So?"

"Oh, it was rubbish," Ron said. "I didn't see anything — as per usual — so I made up some shit."

"No," Evanna said, "Parvati!"

"Evanna Potter."

"Oh, sounds like you're next, I'll meet you back in the common room!" Ron called, rushing to descend the stairs.

Evanna rolled her eyes as she climbed the ladder. That boy was a terrible liar.

* * *

All thoughts of Ron and Parvati were soon forgotten. First, Trelawny had been seemingly possessed and revealed a very real sounding prophecy; then, before Evanna could confer with Ron and Hermione, they told her the tragic news that Buckbeak had lost the appeal. Now, they snuck down to Hagrid's hut under her invisibility cloak, to console him before the inevitable.

Of course, Hagrid weakly reprimanded them for coming, but Evanna could sense he was somewhat glad they did. The giant man looked helpless and it broke her heart. He couldn't contain the shaking of his hands, and after he accidentally shattered his milk jug, Hermione took over the task of making tea.

"And you're positive that nothing can be done?" Evanna asked.

"Dumbledore's tried," said Hagrid. "He's got no power ter overrule the Committee. He told 'em Buckbeak's all right, but they're scared . . . Yeh know what Lucius Malfoy's like . . . threatened 'em, I expect . . . an' the executioner, Macnair, he's an old pal o' Malfoy's . . . but it'll be quick an' clean . . . an' I'll be beside him . . .

"Dumbledore's gonna come down while it — while it happens. Wrote me this mornin'. Said he wants ter — ter be with me. Great man, Dumbledore . . ."

"I suppose," Evanna mumbled, but nobody heard her, because Hermione had said, through her tears, "We'll stay with you too, Hagrid!"

Hagrid shook his head sadly. "Yeh're ter go back up ter the castle. I told yeh, I don' wan' yeh watchin'. An' yeh shouldn' be down here anyway . . . If Fudge an' Dumbledore catch yeh out without permission, Evanna, yeh'll be in big trouble."

Evanna went over to wrap her arms around Hermione, who had turned back towards Hagrid's cupboard to hide her tears. She started to make tea as Evanna hugged her comfortingly, when she suddenly shrieked. Evanna gasped loudly.

"What is it?" Ron asked.

"Scabbers!" both girls yelled together.

Hermione flipped the milk jug upside down and out came a very much alive rat, which Evanna swiftly grabbed. She handed the rat off to Ron, who examined him in complete shock.

"Scabbers, bloody hell," he gasped. Then he looked up at Hermione. "Oh my Godric, Hermione, I — "

"They're comin' . . ."

The three third years turned to stare out the window and, sure enough, there was a group of men coming down the path. Hagrid, trembling, let them out the back. He ushered them out, with a bit of force, considering they were begging to stay and try to explain everything.

Finally, the trio threw the invisibility cloak around themselves and headed up the path. Their place quickened as they heard Hagrid's front door slam. They felt bereaved and knowing that they couldn't do anything was torturous.

Suddenly, they came to a halt, because Scabbers was struggling to escape Ron's pocket. "Come on, Scabbers, it's  _me_! Ron!"

"Ron,  _please_ ," Hermione begged. "I can't bear to hear it!"

"I know, but he's — ow! Scabbers!" Ron shook his hand that Scabbers had bitten. "What on earth — ?"

"Ron, grab the rat and let's go," Evanna said, pushing him forwards a bit.

" _I'm trying_!"

The rat was squealing loudly, pushing and biting to escape Ron's grasp, but it wasn't loud enough to cover up the noises coming from Hagrid's garden. Hermione's eyes widen when she heard faint male voices and then the unmistakable swishing and thud of an axe.

"I can't believe it," she said faintly. "They actually did it."

Evanna nearly turned around to go back to the hut, but her friends grabbed her arms just in time. Hermione couldn't stop wiping tears from her face as they started to head back to the castle. Ron was sad too, but he was also more preoccupied by the fact his newly regained rat was still trying to escape from him.

"Damn it, Scabbers, could you just stay still?" Ron cried, then he nearly dropped the rat again. "He bit me again! What the hell is wrong with him?"

"He's scared," Evanna said.

Her friends stared at her weirdly.

"Oh, I can't read animals minds or anything, Crookshanks is just being a creeper in the bushes over there," she said, pointing to the cat.

"Crookshanks!" Hermione exclaimed. "I am  _not_  going to let you eat Scabbers for real!"

"No, Scabbers, stay with me, no — NO!"

Scabbers had finally slipped out of Ron's hands and darted across the grounds. Crookshanks began to bound after him and then went Ron,abandoning Evanna, Hermione, and the invisibility cloak to chase after his pet. Of course, this caused Evanna and Hermione to join the running, and by the time they caught up to them, there was a large black dog there too.

"What the f — "

The next events all seemed to occur in a blur. First the dog jumped onto Evanna with so much force that she was pushed to the ground, then it had sunk its teeth into Ron's arm, yanking him away to who knows where, and then, as if that wasn't enough, she and Hermione were both knocked to the ground again.

By the time she lit her wand, the dog had already pulled Ron into a large gap in the roots of an even larger tree —

"Oh no," Evanna gasped.

"The Whomping Willow," Hermione cried.

Evanna tried to help Ron, but the tree's branches just hit her backwards again. They wouldn't be able to get by, and she had heard a sickening crack from Ron's leg, so they didn't have much time. How had the dog gotten through?

"We need to get someone," Hermione panted. "We can't get in ourselves — "

"We can't get anyone, we need to save him  _now_ ," Evanna said, scanning the tree to try to figure out a way through the lethal branches without the tree retaliating.

"Crookshanks!"

Evanna watched in awe as the cat gracefully hopped towards the trunk and pressed its paw against a knot in the base of the tree, causing all of the branches to stiffen. The two girls gasped, but didn't question it, just rushing forwards, worried about their friend. Crookshanks leading the way and we out in front of them, they trekked through a small tunnel. Evanna vaguely remembered this tunnel being marked on the Marauder's Map and it had headed off of the map towards Hogsmeade. She and Hermione went as fast as they could go while almost doubled over, until the tunnel began to widen and they found a small opening.

"Where are we?" Hermione asked, peeking through the hole.

"I don't know . . . It's obviously been abandoned for a long time," Evanna said, pulling herself through and then helping Hermione. Her eyes swept over the room and she noticed many huge claw marks and broken furniture. "Well, abandoned by civil people at least."

"Wait, I think we're in the Shrieking Shack!" Hermione gasped, peering through a crack in the boarded up windows.

"That makes sense, actually," Evanna said, her eyes lighting up as theories and ideas formed in her mind. "People would assume that it was haunted, but really there was probably some monster in here — well, it wasn't ghosts that did that," she refuted, pointing at a chair that had been completely torn up as Hermione gave her a terrified look.

"Anyways, let's find Ron and that dog . . ." Hermione sighed.

"Roooooooooon!" Evanna called, and Hermione shoved her hand over the redhead's mouth. "What? It's only Ron and a dog in here, it's not like there are any people . . ."

"Still, it makes me uncomfortable," Hermione shot back, looking around nervously.

"Okay, then let's just find him," Evanna said, pulling Hermione up the stairs. "Hey look, a door that's ajar. Let's kick it open!"

Evanna literally kicked the door open wider and grinned when she saw Ron sitting on the floor beside a four-poster bed inside. "Look! I found him!"

Hermione darted over to Ron, hugging him and then examining his leg with worry. Evanna went to sit on the bed by Crookshanks, rubbing the cat's ears. "So where'd the dog go, Ron? Scared away by your awesomeness I presume."

"No, Evanna, it's a trap!" Ron cried, pointing at the door. "He's an Animagus!"

The door snapped closed to reveal a man lurking behind it. Evanna went completely white as she stared into the maniacal face of Sirius Black.

* * *

 

**Chapter 51: The Intriguing Tale of Sirius Black**

 

* * *

Evanna said nothing for a good minute, just staring at the man with her hand over her mouth in shock, trying not to start sobbing and screaming. She had to keep her cool or else she would definitely die tonight. So she swallowed her tears and looked at the man blankly.

"Well, that was rather dramatic, don't you think?" Evanna asked impassively. Her friends stared at her. "What? I'm playing it cool, like I usually do when facing Voldemort. I'm actually terrified right now. Didn't you see my nervous breakdown a couple months ago?"

Black, who hasn't moved for a few seconds either (pausing for dramatic effect, Evanna presumed), finally expelled Evanna and Hermione's wands away from them and said in a growl, "I knew you'd come for your friend . . . You're like your father in that way . . ."

"Oh yes! You knew my father, didn't you?" Evanna said, grinning and clapping her hands together. "What was he like? Be honest now; you killed him so I never really got the chance to get to know him."

"Evanna, don't be idiotic," Hermione whispered,looking horrified.

"If you want to kill Evanna, you'll have to go through us!" Ron yelled, attempting to stand up, but it was obviously causing him terrible pain.

"Lie down," Black said quietly to Ron. "You will damage that leg even more."

"Did you hear me?" Ron said weakly, though he was clinging painfully to Evanna to stay upright. "You'll have to kill all three of us!"

"There'll be only one murder here tonight," Black said.

"You're a real drama queen, aren't you?" Evanna said, rolling her eyes. "Besides, I don't recall you having a problem with killing people."

"Evanna!"

"He killed my parents, I will speak to him in whatever tone I fucking please, Hermione," Evanna said seriously. "Although it is slightly strange that you seem concerned about Ron, but I'll ignore that. Now, I want an explanation, if you please, Mr. Black. Why did you sell my parents out to Voldemort? Oh stop cringing, Ron, it's just a really ugly name."

"Yes, an explanation is exactly what you need," Black said, grinning insanely.

But before he could say any more, they heard footsteps coming from the floor below. Hermione and Ron began to yell, and then a few moments later, Remus Lupin appeared in the doorway. Ron and Hermione looked relieved — and so did Sirius Black.

Evanna watched with interest as Remus and Sirius spoke, obviously having a conversation that made sense to them, but not anyone else. They were talking about a male, who was in the room and something that Sirius and the mysterious man switched without telling Remus. Then Remus helped Sirius to his feet.

Just as Evanna was about to exclaim about how interesting this was becoming, Hermione screamed.

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!"

Remus suddenly seemed to remember the three students were in the room and began to try to reason with Hermione, but she was yelling about how she had trusted him and that he was actually helping Black this whole time.

"He wasn't helping Sirius, Hermione," Evanna said. "They used to be old friends, along with my father and that Peter Pettigrew kid who died, and now they're friends again because I assume that Sirius is somehow not evil and I personally would  _love_ to hear this story!"

"No, Evanna, don't believe him — he's a werewolf!" Hermione screamed.

Evanna stared blankly at her. "Okay, so? That doesn't make him untrustworthy and I'm the best at recognizing distrust, Hermione — do you remember Quirrell? Do you remember who figured out that Quirrell was the bad guy? Do you remember that?"

Hermione groaned. "You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"

"No, I'm not, because you think you're so smart — and you are, don't get me wrong — but I'm just more perceptive and observant and I am so much better at people skills, okay? You know, I am  _so_  angry at Sirius Black — like if I were the killing type, he would be dead right now — but I am  _not_  angry at Remus Lupin, so let the men explain themselves and then we can decide whether to kick their arses or not. Okay?"

She turned towards Remus and Sirius. "My friends trust me, but they don't trust you. As Remus can testify to, Hermione is super smart and can and  _will_ beat you up with super complicated spells, so let's just not piss me off or I unleash her wrath. And my wrath too, I could easily beat you two, even without a wand, okay? First question, how did Remus know we were here?"

"The Marauder's Map," Remus said. "And you can all have your wands back, if that will help you feel safer." He handed them back their wands as Evanna stared at him in surprise.

" _So_   _that's where it went_!" Evanna cried. "You stole it from me, Remus? What sort of teacher are you?"

"To be fair, I helped create it, so you stole it first," Remus said.

"Nah, I got it from the Weasley Twins. Anyways, with that new intel, I'm guessing you're Moony? As reference to the whole werewolf bit? And, hm, Sirius is Padfoot, because of the dog Animagus, and then . . . My dad and Pettigrew are Wormtail and Prongs. Or vice versa, I don't know about them, considering they're dead."

"Only one of them is dead," Sirius said angrily.

"Oh really? I'm assuming that Pettigrew's the living one since I've heard my father's last words in my head when facing Dementors before," Evanna said.

Remus nodded, then pointed to Ron. "Scabbers," Remus said. "Could I see him please?"

Ron, still wary and angry at the two men, held the rat closer to his chest.

"Ron, just give him the rat," Evanna said. "We're in a room with a mass murderer, do you really want to mess with them? Besides, I think I get where they're going with this."

Ron rolled his eyes, but still refrained from handing over his pet to their professor. "So, what does my rat have to do with anything?"

"He's not a rat," Sirius said.

"What d'you mean — of course he's a rat — "

"No, he's not," Remus said quietly. "He's a wizard."

"An Animagus," Sirius growled, "by the name of Peter Pettigrew."

"So Pettigrew is Wormtail because his Animagus is a rat?" Evanna asked, raising her eyebrows. "That means my dad is Prongs? I'm still confused — "

"You're actually buying into this crap?" Ron asked.

"No, I got a free thirty day trial, and if I'm not satisfied, I get a refund," Evanna said. (Only Hermione understood her reference.) "They have about ten seconds to stop being so dramatic and explain themselves. I don't care if it's not your aesthetic or whatever, just give it to me straight. Skip unnecessary details, we can exchange life stories later, don't show your work, just show the answer."

"James, Sirius, Peter, and I were best friends at Hogwarts. I had been accepted even though I was a werewolf, but you can't just let a child transform every full moon without protecting everyone somehow, so Dumbledore built this passage into what is now known as the Shrieking Shack."

"So  _you_ were the monster inside that made everyone think it was haunted!" Evanna grinned. Then she faltered. "Not that, by being a werewolf, it makes you a monster by default. Hey wait, we have ghosts all over Hogwarts, why would people be unnerved by a haunted house?" She paused, blushing. "Sorry, digressing. Go on, Remus."

"So, as I was saying, I never told my friends that I was a werewolf, as I was terrified of abandonment. But they eventually figured it out, much like you did Hermione, and they didn't abandon me — in fact, they became Animagi so that they could stay with me during the nights of the full moon."

"Because werewolves only attack humans," Hermione said, and even though she still seemed wary of the men, she was also kind of in awe.

"Right. So Sirius became Padfoot, a dog, Peter became Wormtail, a rat, and James became Prongs, a stag. We would leave the confinements of the Shrieking Shack and run around the castle grounds. I doubt anyone else came to know more of the castle then we did. That's why we came to write the Marauder's Map."

"Wow, a stag? I wonder what sort of Animagus I would have — "

"That's still really dangerous! Running around in the dark with a werewolf! What if you'd given the others the slip, and bitten somebody?" Hermione scolded.

"A thought that still haunts me," Remus said heavily. "And there were near misses, many of them. We laughed about them afterwards. We were young, thoughtless — carried away with our own cleverness."

"Well, if I was part of a group of boys was smart enough to become Animagus, create a map that actually shows where everyone is at that time, and who knows what else, I think I'd be carried away by cleverness too," Evanna said.

"I think you're closer to that point than you think," Ron sniggered, nudging Evanna playfully.

"But getting back on topic, why didn't you tell anyone that Sirius was an Animagus? Even if you don't believe it anymore, at the time you believed he was guilty!" Evanna asked.

"I was feeling guilty that we betrayed Dumbledore's trust," Remus admitted. Then he sighed. "I suppose, in a way, that means Snape was right . . ."

"Snape is literally never right," Evanna said. "Especially when he decides to steal my invisibility cloak, I mean that's just stupid." She spun around to face the doorway. "I know you're there Professor, you're not exactly the embodiment of sneaky."

And indeed, there was Snape, whipping off Evanna's cloak and pointing his wand at Remus. He shot a glare in Evanna's direction, who just shrugged.

"What? I only speak the truth. You know, you should probably stop threatening Remus, or I'll be forced to use force," Evanna added nonchalantly, but gripped her wand a bit tighter.

Snape ignored her, his eyes never leaving Remus. "You're wondering, perhaps, how I knew you were here? I've just been to your office, Lupin. You forgot to take your potion tonight, so I took a gobletful along. And very lucky I did . . . lucky for me, I mean. Lying on your desk was a certain map. One glance at it told me all I needed to know. I saw you running along this passageway and out of sight."

"Severus — " Remus began, but Snape overrode him.

"I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout — "

"Severus, you're making a mistake," said Remus urgently. "You haven't heard everything — I can explain — Sirius is not here to kill Evanna — "

"Two more for Azkaban tonight," said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this . . . He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin . . . a  _tame_  werewolf — "

"You fool," said Remus softly. "Is a schoolboy grudge worth putting an innocent man back inside Azkaban?"

"Professor Snape, putting all of the dislike I have for you behind us, you should really hear these guys out, if not for just some entertainment. The story really is interesting and — "

"Keep quiet, Potter!"

"No, I will not," Evanna yelled hotly. "You're being narrow-minded and stupid! You think you hate Sirius Black? He didn't kill your parents! But guess what? I'm still hearing him out, and I'm beginning to believe more and more that he's telling the truth! I don't care about what petty childhood argument you had, you are a grown-ass man! Start acting like one!"

Snape spun to face Evanna and upon seeing his deranged expression, Evanna knew that hadn't had the effect she had hoped it would. He pointed his wand at Sirius again, looking ready to kill without a second thought and so Evanna, Ron, and Hermione exchanged a look and did the first thing the thought of.

"EXPELLIARMUS!"

The impact of the three spells together caused Snape to fly across the room and was knocked unconscious. Hermione looked as if she had just killed a man, covering her face with her hands. Ron looked amazed at his own skill, staring down at his wand. Evanna looked rather accomplished.

"I've wanted to do that for ages," Evanna grinned. "He is s _uch_ a bastard!"

"Agreed," Sirius said. "But you should've left him to me."

"Well, I still don't quite trust you, and I have this policy of not killing."

"You've killed You-Know-Who three times," Ron pointed out.

"Ehhh, does he  _really_ count? I mean, the idiot keeps coming back! Plus, all three times were accidents."

"We just attacked a teacher!" Hermione gasped, grabbing Ron's shoulder. "We attacked a teacher!"

"Will anyone really blame us?"

"Yes, Ron! Yes they will!" Hermione cried, looking distressed. "What do we do?"

"Well, we finish The Intriguing Tale of Sirius Black and decide whether we need to knock these two out as well," Evanna said. "Now, why don't you get to your main point of this story please? Enough about your Hogwarts years, I want to know why Sirius Black should be given the Not Guilty verdict."

"Ron, give me Scabbers," Remus said, but Ron was clearly still unconvinced.

"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean . . ." He looked up at Evanna and Hermione for support, "Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat — there are  _millions_  of rats! How's he supposed to know which one he is after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"

"You know, Sirius, that's a fair question," said Remus, turning to Sirius and frowning slightly. "How did you find out where he was?"

Sirius pulled a newspaper clipping out of his pocket and smoothed it out so they could all see it. It was the photograph of Ron and his family that had appeared in the Daily Prophet the previous summer, and there, on Ron's shoulder, was Scabbers. Remus examined the rat in the picture closer and gasped.

"His front paw . . ."

"What about it?" Ron said defiantly.

"He's got a toe missing."

As soon as Sirius had said this, Evanna gasped, everything coming together in her mind. "I GET IT NOW!" She began bouncing on the bed. "The largest piece of Pettigrew they could find was a  _finger_ , Ron! A finger! So, he cut off his own finger and transformed so that everyone would think that he died!"

"B-but Scabbers has been in my family for ages — "

"Twelve years!" Evanna yelled, getting even more excited now. "It's like I said at Christmas! That's  _way_ too long for an average rat to live! It's because he's  _not_ an average rat! Oh, oh, oh! And when I saw you and Crookshanks meeting early in the morning before the Quidditch game — oh my Godric, Crookshanks knew! That's why he was the only cat chasing Scabbers around! Because he knew Scabbers was an Animagus! Wait, wait, has Crookshanks been helping you get in the castle? Oh my gosh, oh my gosh — wait." Evanna suddenly stopped and stared at Sirius. "Then why — wait, who — I don't know," she sighed. "At this point, I'm believing that whole 'Scabbers-is-Pettigrew' thing, but then did you  _actually_  kill my parents, or was it the rat?"

"It was the rat," Sirius clarified sadly, "but I as good as killed them . . . I convinced them to let Peter be their secret keeper at the last moment and he — " Sirius choked on his tears. "I went to check on him and he wasn't there and then I found them dead and I knew what he had done . . ."

"Damn!" Evanna cried. "That's crazy! But I also love it — mystery-intrigue-crime-adventure-action-thriller stories are my favourite, ha. Hey," she frowned at the men, "how on  _earth_ did you not realize that Pettigrew was a dirty little rat when his Animagus was, well,  _a rat_?"

Sirius and Remus looked at each other.

"Well," Remus said, "he  _was_  our friend at the time."

"But enough chit-chat! Give me the rat!" Sirius said and Ron hesitated.

"I mean, this is all too crazy to not be true, but what if Pettigrew  _isn't_ Scabbers and it's a really crazy coincidence?" Ron said.

"If he's a normal rat, nothing will happen and it won't hurt him," Remus reassured the ginger-haired boy. "Please, Ron."

Ron finally sighed and handed the rat to Remus. Scabbers (if that is indeed his real name) started squirming even more wildly. Sirius and Remus both aimed their wands at him and the three teenagers watched raptly.

It seemed to all happen in a second. Scabbers was there, then after a moment shaking and writhing, he was a fully grown man.

"Bloody hell," Ron screamed, raising his wand in horror.

"OOOOOH I WAS RIGHT!" Evanna cried. "Ew, wait, that's disgusting! A fully grown man was secretly hanging around us!"

Both Hermione and Ron looked disgusted as well.

"Okay," Evanna said, addressing Sirius and Remus, "I know you want to ask him a million questions, but can I just say remind you that Snape was coming to give Remus his potion, so that means it's a full moon tonight, which means that he's going to turn into a werewolf, so why don't we just get out of here? Bring this rat back to the castle and question him there, with more teacher supervision?"

"Evanna, no, Sirius Black wants to kill me!" Pettigrew said, turning to her.

"Uh, first of all, I didn't say we'd hurt you yet, just question you, maybe use some sort of truth telling potion, this is a magic world they must have those, right? If not, let's do a polygraph. Second of all, fuck you, you're gross, please don't speak to me ever again," Evanna said, crossing her arms.

"Wow, that's the second f-bomb in one night, Evanna must be mad," Ron mumbled.

"Evanna's right, Remus! We have to go!" Hermione said. "Maybe if we get to the castle quick enough, you can get your potion in before your transformation."

"You're absolutely right. We'll keep the questioning to a minimum," Remus said. "Then we'll hurry back to the castle."

"Sirius," Evanna said quietly, and Sirius jolted when she said his name. "I know that you want to kill Peter. I'm sure Remus does too. But you won't get your innocence proven with a dead body. Besides, do you really want to stoop to his level?"

Sirius shook his head with a sigh. This girl was too much like her parents.

* * *

_The questioning ended up taking a bit longer than Evanna would've liked, but they had learned a lot of rather interesting information. Now, as they were finally hurrying back to castle as fast as they could go with one unconscious teacher and two of their party chained to Pettigrew to make sure he didn't escape. Evanna was at the back of the group with Sirius, telling him all about the many adventures she had during her Hogwarts years._

" _So then I stabbed the diary with the Basilisk fang, killing Tom Riddle again and saving Ginny! It was crazy," Evanna laughed. "I was so ready for a quiet year, and then you showed up! It was super stressful, but now it's been all worth it, of course. I'm so emotionally exhausted though, I just want to sleep for days and get some peace. Unfortunately, I doubt that'll happen anytime soon."_

" _What about over the summer?" Sirius asked._

" _Ugh, my current guardians, my aunt, uncle, and cousin, are completely terrible people. They're, like, abusive. It sucks," Evanna sighed. "But I have tons of friends who invite me over all the time, so it'll be okay I guess."_

" _Oh, speaking of guardians, um . . ."_

" _Oh, you're my godfather," Evanna blinked. "Wait . . ." Her lips spread into a grin. "Are you saying you want to be my legal guardian?!"_

" _If you want," Sirius said._

" _Of course! I mean, please, please, please!" Evanna exclaimed. "Once you're finally declared innocent and they arrest that rat instead, I'll be able to live with you! Wait, do you even have a house?"_

" _Well, in a way — "_

" _Oh no! Remus!"_

Evanna awoke with a start in the Hospital Wing. She rubbed her head, trying to remember what had just happened. It was all coming back to her slowly and she groaned as she recalled everything.

They had been too late. Remus had transformed and Pettigrew had escaped. Then, she, Hermione, and Sirius had almost been smothered by Dementors, until a mysterious patronus had appeared and scattered them all away. Now, she sat up with a throbbing headache, looking over at her friends. Ron was still unconscious, being tended to by Madam Pomfrey, and Hermione was sitting up beside her, evidently eavesdropping on Snape and Cornelius Fudge, who were talking just outside the door.

"Ah, you're awake!" Madam Pomfrey bustled over with the largest piece of chocolate Evanna had ever seen and started to break it with a hammer.

"How's Ron?" Evanna and Hermione asked in unison.

"He'll live," said Madam Pomfrey grimly. "As for you two, you'll be staying here until I'm satisfied you're — Potter, what do you think you're doing?"

Evanna had hopped out of bed and grabbed her wand.

"I need to talk to Dumbledore," she said.

"Potter," said Madam Pomfrey soothingly, "it's all right. They've got Black. He's locked away upstairs. The Dementors will be performing the kiss any moment now — "

"WHAT?" Evanna cried. She couldn't bear to think that the person who possibly would take her away from the Dursleys was going to have his soul sucked out of him.

Unfortunately, her shout had caught the attention of Snape and Fudge, who quickly entered. She scowled at them — they were  _not_ her favourite people. Fudge started to speak, but Evanna spoke over him.

"Is there a potion that forces people to tell the truth?"

"I — what?"

"I'm not an expert on what magic can and can't do, but if Muggles can do it with a machine, then I assume wizards can do it with some sort of potion, right? So, is there a potion that forces people to tell the truth?"

"Er, yes — Veritaserum. But why — ?"

"Give some to Sirius Black," Evanna said. When everyone stared at her, she sighed. "It's the most logical thing to do, isn't it? If you want to find out what the truth is, force him to tell the truth! I will literally bet a hundred galleons on the fact that he's innocent! In fact, I'll bet a million galleons!"

"Evanna's right! Give him a fair trial! Then you'll find out the truth!" Hermione piped up.

"As you can see," Snape spoke over them smoothly, "they're both confunded . . . Black's done a very good job on them . . ."

"Okay, give  _us_ veritaserum!" Evanna pressed. "Then you'll see that we're not confunded! Please! Listen to me! When have I been wrong?"

Fudge hesitated, but then Madam Pomfrey began to push the men out of the Hospital Wing, saying how they were causing Evanna distress. Evanna fumed as she noticed Snape smirking. He was nothing more than a pathetic child! He might not be working for Voldemort, but he sure wasn't against Voldemort either.

Just then, Dumbledore entered. "My apologies, Poppy, but I need a word with Miss Potter and Miss Granger," Dumbledore said calmly. "I have just been talking to Sirius Black — "

"I suppose he's told you the same fairy tale he's planted in Potter's mind?" spat Snape. "Something about a rat, and Pettigrew being alive — "

"That, indeed, is Black's story," said Dumbledore, surveying Snape closely through his half-moon spectacles.

"And does my evidence count for nothing?" snarled Snape. "Peter Pettigrew was not in the Shrieking Shack, nor did I see any sign of him on the grounds."

"That's lack of evidence, actually," Evanna pointed out. Snape sneered at her and she smiled back innocently.

"I would like to speak to Evanna and Hermione alone," said Dumbledore. "Cornelius, Severus, Poppy — please leave us."

After a bit more bickering and protesting, the room was finally vacant apart from Dumbledore, Evanna, Hermione, and the unconscious Ron. Hermione looked anxious, but Evanna simply sighed, knowing that Dumbledore knew everything already, as he always did.

"It is your turn to listen, and I beg you will not interrupt me, because there is very little time," Dumbledore said quietly. "There is not a shred of proof to support Black's story, except your word — and the word of two thirteen-year-old wizards will not convince anybody. A street full of eyewitnesses swore they saw Sirius murder Pettigrew. I myself gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius had been the Potters' Secret-Keeper.

"Professor Lupin is currently deep in the forest, unable to tell anyone anything. By the time he is human again, it will be too late, Sirius will be worse than dead. I might add that werewolves are so mistrusted by most of our kind that his support will count for very little and the fact that he and Sirius are old friends.

"It is too late, you understand me? You must see that Professor Snape's version of events is far more convincing than yours. Sirius has not acted like an innocent man. The attack on the Fat Lady — entering Gryffindor Tower with a knife — without Pettigrew, alive or dead, we have no chance of overturning Sirius's sentence."

"But you believe us, of course," Evanna said.

"Yes, I do. But I have no power to make other men see the truth, or to overrule the Minister of Magic . . . What we need," Dumbledore concluded slowly, and his light blue eyes moved from Evanna to Hermione, "is more time."

"But — " Hermione began, and then her eyes widened comically. "OH!"

"What?" Evanna asked, completely clueless.

"Now, pay attention," said Dumbledore, speaking very low, and very clearly. "Sirius is locked in Professor Flitwick's office on the seventh floor. Thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower. If all goes well, you will be able to save more than one innocent life tonight. But remember this, both of you: you must not be seen. Miss Granger, you know the law — you know what is at stake . . . You — must — not — be — seen."

Evanna watched in bewilderment as Dumbledore turned to leave.

"I am going to lock you in. It is — five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three turns should do it. Good luck." And with that, Dumbledore closed the door.

"Good luck?" Evanna repeated. "Three turns? What the hell is he talking about? What are we supposed to do?"

"I almost expected you would've figured it out by now," Hermione said, almost laughing as she pulled out a long golden chain from around her neck. It had a tiny hourglass hanging from it. "Evanna, come here."

"Nice necklace," Evanna commented as she moved so that her and Hermione's shoulders were touching. "What on earth is going on?"

"Here — " Hermione threw the chain around Evanna's neck too. "Ready?" she asked breathlessly.

"Yes! What exactly am I ready for?" Evanna asked, but Hermione ignored her. Her only answer was Hermione turning the hourglass over three times and the room disappearing from sight.

* * *

 

**and finally... sadly...**

**Chapter 52: Contemplative**

 

* * *

"What the  _fuck_ , Hermione?!"

"Third f-bomb," Hermione muttered nervously. "Okay, you're obviously mad, I'm sorry, but I'll explain in a few minutes. Right now, we need to get somewhere more private."

Hermione pulled Evanna into a broom closet, listening at the door.

"Broom closet? Are you trying to seduce me, Granger?" Evanna smirked despite the situation.

"Nah, I know your type: tall, ginger, and freckly," Hermione muttered in reply, also smirking a bit. "Ah, I hear footsteps . . . Yes, I think that's us."

Evanna, who had been blushing lightly at Hermione's comment, now gave her a confused look. "Okay,  _what_  is going on, Hermione?"

Hermione sighed, and turned to her friend. "We've just gone back in time. Three hours back."

"Oh my gosh, so that necklace —"

"A Time-Turner," Hermione said.

"So that's how you've been doing so many classes!" Evanna gasped. "That is  _so_  cool! Also, completely unhealthy, please do not do that again next year."

"I won't," Hermione said, though she seemed sidetracked, focusing on the footsteps outside the door. "I'm sure it's us. It doesn't sound like more than three people . . . and we're walking slowly because we're under the Invisibility Cloak . . ."

"I  _love_  those powers of deduction," Evanna grinned.

"Okay, now I need you to help me with  _your_  powers of deduction," Hermione said, turning back to face Evanna. "Why would Dumbledore send us three hours back in time?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Evanna asked. "Dumbledore wants us to save Sirius!"

"But how?"

"Well, he sent us three hours back for a reason . . ." Evanna mulled over the situation, and then snapped her fingers. "He wants us to save Buckbeak too!"

"What?"

"We're three hours back —  _before_  Buckbeak was executed! Dumbledore told us the exact window where Sirius was being held, right? He wants us to save Buckbeak to fly up and save Sirius!"

Hermione gasped. "You're right, you must be right! But it'll be incredibly difficult — we can't be seen."

"I think I'm getting a grasp on how it works," Evanna said. "Now come on! We have a Hippogriff to save!"

* * *

"I understand it now," Evanna mused, out of the blue. She and Hermione were sitting in the Forbidden Forest with the very much alive Buckbeak, waiting for their past-selves to exit the Whomping Willow.

"Understand what?" Hermione asked, looking up from where she had been boredly picking at the grass.

"How the whole Time Turner thing works," Evanna said. "We don't actually change anything."

Hermione gave her an incredulous look. "We literally just stopped Buckbeak from being  _murdered_. How have we not changed anything?"

"It's not like the time travel you see in the movies, like Back to the Future or whatever. We're not going back in time, changing something and returning to the future. We're still  _living_  through the past events, and so we're living in the same, unchanged timeline, but our so-called 'changes' have just always been changed, because we already changed it! Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Not really, no," Hermione admitted.

"Well, think back to before the whole Sirius Black reveal, when we thought Buckbeak had died," Evanna said. "We didn't  _see_  him get killed, we just  _heard_  the swinging of an axe and made assumptions from there. Now, we've witnessed that the executioner just swung his axe out of frustration, because Buckbeak  _wasn't_  there. So you see, we didn't actually change anything, we just fulfilled the outcome that already happened, you know?"

"Wow, it's really strange when you put it like that," Hermione said, still sounding slightly confused.

"It makes me wonder even more about that Patronus," Evanna added, almost just to herself.

"Patronus?" Hermione asked.

"Oh yeah, that's what saved us from the Dementors earlier! I was all faint and out of it, but I definitely saw  _someone_  cast a crazy powerful Patronus and ward off all the Dementors," Evanna explained. "It was really weird too, I thought it looked like — nevermind."

"Who? A teacher?" Hermione asked, intrigued.

"Whoever it was was too far away for me to actually see, and the lighting was terrible, and I was on the verge of blacking out, and — "

"Evanna!" Hermione insisted.

"I thought it kind of looked like my mom," Evanna admitted in a whisper.

Hermione hesitated awkwardly. "Um, Evanna . . ."

"I know she's dead, Hermione," Evanna snapped, "that's why I didn't want to admit it to you!"

"I mean, I'm sure it was someone who looked very similar to your mother!" Hermione assured her quickly. "I'm not saying you're crazy or anything, Evanna!" Then she hesitated, cautiously edging closer to the girl, with obvious curiosity in her eyes. "But, if you don't mind my asking . . . what did the Patronus look like?"

Evanna paused, racking her vague memories of the incident. "It was definitely cervine," she decided, and, at Hermione's confused expression, added, "That means deerlike. A stag or a doe I think, but I couldn't really tell . . ."

Their conversation seemed to have ended there, as they were both consumed by their own theories of what could have happened earlier that evening (or later that evening, at this point in time). After an hour had passed — though it felt much longer — Hermione grabbed Evanna's arm and said, "Look! Here we come!"

Evanna watched with a sigh as the events unfolded before them, like a movie. She had already come to terms with the fact that she couldn't do anything, since she couldn't  _actually_  change anything. Still, she wished she could. In hindsight, she would've used Petrificus Totalus on both Remus and Pettigrew. A petrification curse should stop a werewolf in its tracks and keep a man from turning into a rat, shouldn't it?

As she watched, she suddenly grabbed Hermione's arm and began to pull her back. "We have to move!"

"What?"

"Remus is heading this way!" Evanna said, already untying Buckbeak and pulling him along. "Come on, we can head towards Hagrid's, it's nowhere near the action."

The girl set off as quickly as they could with a large Hippogriff lumbering along behind them. They could hear Remus howling in the distance and Evanna felt a pang of regret in her heart. If only she had wrapped it all up sooner. Perhaps if she hadn't been so curious about Remus and Sirius' backstory, they wouldn't have been in this mess . . .

 _At least,_  she thought,  _everything is going to turn out alright in the end. Remus isn't going to do any major damage and, while Pettigrew might get away, we're going to save Sirius and Buckbeak tonight! I suppose it'll be the second time Sirius will have been saved from death, considering the Dementors earlier . . ._

Evanna stopped in her tracks, having a revelation. Hermione turned to her in confusion. "Evanna? What's wrong?"

"Hermione, do you remember how I said I thought it was my mother who cast that patronus and saved us before?" Evanna asked.

"Yes?" Hermione answered, though she still sounded confused.

"Well, who does everyone compare  _me_  to?" Evanna asked, looking Hermione in the eyes.

The brunette gasped. "No, you don't think . . .?"

"Only one way to find out!" Evanna said, running back towards the lake.

"Evanna! Wait!"

Evanna didn't stop. The idea that it wasn't her mother made a lot more sense than the deceased Lily Potter coming back from the grave. She ran as fast as she could, pushing through branches and bushes, nearly tripping on roots and rocks. Her braid even came loose, causing her red hair to flow freely, but she didn't care. She needed to get there in time . . .

She stopped behind a tree and watched as Dementors swarmed around her, Sirius, and Hermione. Her past self was far too weak to produce a corporeal Patronus, and her feeble attempts barely even lit up from her wand tip. Nobody who resembled her long-dead mother was here, on the other side of the lake. Nobody was here at all. Except herself. And that's when she confirmed her theory.

Evanna stepped out from the bushes quickly and confidently and, with thoughts of her friends — her mind lingering on the image of George — she pointed her wand across the lake and yelled, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

She was elated as a huge silver doe erupted from her wand tip, galloping towards the Dementors gracefully. Evanna smiled widely as the deer walked around the lake, hovering over the water, causing the beasts of depression to scatter and flee. Once every Dementor was gone and her past self and friends were safe, the doe slowly approached her. It stopped just before her, watching her with beady eyes. Evanna felt a wave of peace as she stared at it.

Then the silver creature disappeared, leaving behind nothing but darkness.

* * *

Evanna sat in an armchair across from Remus Lupin, sipping tea. He was resigning from his position as professor. It was all Snape's fault really — he had been childish and had let slip of Remus' werewolf problem. When Evanna had asked Remus about it, he had only sighed tiredly with an exasperated smile on his face. So now they sat, on his last day at the school, drinking tea and discussing Sirius Black.

" _He's_  promised to keep in touch with me," Evanna was saying, "and if an alleged mass murderer who's on the run from the law can keep in touch, you can too Remus."

"All right, all right," Remus smiled. "If you're sure you want letters from a sad old man — "

"You're only in your thirties, Remus."

Remus laughed. "Well, I feel like I've aged years in just the past few days."

"Welcome to my life," Evanna joked. "Thirteen? Who's she, I don't know her. I feel fifty at least."

"So, how is that boyfriend of yours doing?" Remus asked, smiling coyly as he took another sip of tea.

Evanna went a bit red, but smiled. "George is doing great. He and Fred are mad I didn't invite them on our Sirius Black adventure though." She giggled. "Though I think he nearly died of embarrassment when I told him that he was a key part of summoning my patronus." Sighing, she placed her teacup down. "You know, I was actually really looking forward to potentially living with Sirius."

"You thought that he was a murderer for the majority of the year," Remus pointed out.

"Yeah, but he's not, plus he seems loads better than the Dursleys, you know?"

Remus frowned. "They're your family, Evanna. Blood is thicker than water."

"Wrong," Evanna said.

"They're  _not_  your family?" he asked sarcastically.

"No," she said, "that's not the saying. People have forgotten what the original was over the years. It's not 'blood is thicker than water' — it's 'the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb' which I would hazard to agree with. The Weasleys are more family to me than the Dursleys ever will be."

Remus hummed in thought and sighed. "I wish I could help you Evanna, but they're your legal guardians."

"Yeah, it doesn't really matter," Evanna muttered. "The Weasleys will probably invite me over for the summer anyways. I'll be fine." She looked up at him sadly. "Do you really have to leave?"

"It's better this way," he said quietly. "I'll keep in touch, okay?"

She nodded, hoping that the next year would be better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thanks again for reading and hanging out with me through all these years! You're all incredible and valid! You all deserve all of the happiness in the world; I know for a fact you've all attributed a lot to mine.
> 
> Much love for the last time, Jayce
> 
> I'm gonna miss you all. Hit me up if you wanna be friends or ramble about this story or another one :)


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